The Amazing Spider-Man 3
by GhostWriterGirl-1
Summary: Peter Parker is trying to juggle his responsibilities as Spider-Man and being a college student while dealing with Gwen's death. Silkie Arach is the prickly new girl with a secret that comes with dangerous consequences. What will happen when Peter and Silkie meet? Will they discover each other's secrets? Will sparks fly between them? Read to find out...
1. Prologue

**Hey everyone!**

 **I am back with a new story! But this time, it isn't Danny Phantom. No, it's a Spider-Man fanfiction, and is my verison of a continuation of The Amazing Spider-Man film series, where it introduces a couple of OCs of mine.**

 **I wanted to do this story a long time ago, but I've had all my other projects, and yeah. So, I hope you like this, and the OCs in this story.**

 **So, you guys know the drill; I don't own The Amazing Spider-Man that belongs to both Marvel and Sony. All I own is this story and the OCs in it.**

 **Please read and review!**

 **GhostWriterGirl out!**

 **Chapter 1**

Prologue

 _Fifteen years ago…_

In a lab in resident Chicago, a woman was looking into a microscope, where in the petri dish was a dead spider; which didn't look like any other spiders. She was hunched over it, worry lines on her pale face as she muttered under her breath, "Come on, come on, give me some answers."

Suddenly, a phone rang, making the woman jump.

"Jesus!" she exclaimed, hand to her heart, before she stood up and headed to her phone, picking it up and answering it.

"Hello?"

" _Janet, it's me._ "

The woman, Janet, frowned.

"Richard? What are you doing calling me at this hour?"

" _I'm sorry, but it's about something really important._ "

"If it's about the spiders, then I have to say that I've been trying to make some progress, especially with our side-project, but-"

" _It's not about the spiders. Well, it is part of the main reason I called you, but it's also something else._ "

"Then what is it about?"

" _Janet, I have to run. Norman Osborn has falsified evidence that I'm using the spiders to help sell biological weapons to foreign countries. I've killed almost all of the spiders that I have, and I'm going to download the rest of the information to Roosevelt, but it will only be a matter of time until he discovers you were part of this as well."_

Janet, who had looked shocked, asked, "What do you want me to do, Richard? I can't go on the run; I have duties here. Besides, I can't do that to Paul or my daughter, or my brother and his family."

" _I know, and that's why I called you; to warn you before Norman comes after you. It's best if you kill all the spiders that you have here, download all of our remaining research that you have to Roosevelt, and afterwards delete it from all of your computer history. And don't tell anyone else about the spiders who didn't already know; not even your family. It's the best you can do to keep Norman from going after you, and eliminating you as well._ "

"Okay, Richard, I will. I give you my word."

" _Thank you, Janet_."

"It's no problem," Janet said back. She frowned and added, "But what about Peter? If you and Mary are on the run, like you said-"

" _He's going to be staying at May and Ben's. Me and Mary are_ not _going to subject him to being on the run with us. It's not the life for him."_

"That was a good call, Richard; I would do the same with Claire, or Aaron, or Silkie," Janet responded back as she moved to her computers, keeping her phone to her ear by using her shoulder and downloading all of her research to Roosevelt.

"Research is downloading into Roosevelt."

" _Good._ "

"But Richard, if you and Mary are found innocent of that evidence, will you come back?"

A long silence, and then he said, " _I don't know. It's uncertain. But, if we don't come back, hopefully you or someone else in your family or mine can continue our research, and find the answer to what we've been trying to find."_

"Same here. That's all we can hope for now. Goodbye, Richard; I'll terminate the spiders and the files after they've downloaded into Roosevelt."

" _Goodbye, Janet_."

Richard hung up.

Janet set the phone down, breathing heavily as she ran a hand through her black hair, which had started to come out of her ponytail. She turned to the computer, and saw that the files had successfully downloaded into Roosevelt. She then typed on the computer, quickly and easily deleting the files from everything in her computer's history, and then erasing it from the Internet, before moving to the spiders in their containers.

"Sorry fellas, but I can't afford Norman discovering that I was part of this," she whispered, before connecting all the containers to a nerve toxin and turned it on.

Immediately, the spiders dropped down dead. She then grabbed the containers full of the dead spiders and placed them in a titanium-lined case, before going to a secret vault and pressing in the code and storing the case full of the dead spiders inside, closing it and locking it.

Going to the lab's door, after grabbing everything she needed and double-checking everything was done, Janet left her lab in the research facility she worked in, going to her car and entering inside, closing the door after her.

It had begun to rain, and as she sat in her car, she muttered, "I just hope you're right and that Norman won't come after me, Richard."

She then pulled out of where she was parked and headed back to her home, knowing that she had to get rid of anything else that related to hers and Richard's project in her private study. She may have deleted evidence in her lab, but there was still enough for Norman to do what he did to Richard to her, evidence that needed to be terminated so as not to contradict her or her family.

As she drove down the familiar road towards her home, Janet called her closest friend, Diane O'Malley.

" _Hello?"_

"Diane, it's me."

" _Janet? Long time no see, hey?_ "

"I know. Look, can you do me a favour; I'm going to be holed up in my study for the rest of the night, so could you take Silkie back home? And before you ask, Paul is out on a guys' night out, and won't be back till five."

" _Anything for a friend. But why do you need me to take Silkie back home? Not that I mind, that is; she's like family._ "

"Richard's been contradicted. Norman has falsified evidence against him that he's selling biological weapons to a foreign party thanks to the spiders. We've both terminated the spiders that we had in our labs, and we've downloaded our respective research into Roosevelt, but I've still got research in my lab that I need to get rid of, in case Norman finds out about my part in the project and wants to do the same to me as well, and I don't want Silkie to see me do that," Janet explained.

" _Whoa. But, I understand; I'll take Silkie back home._ "

"Thanks, you're the best Diane."

" _Anything for a friend._ "

She then hung up.

A couple minutes after the call, Janet pulled up into the driveway of her home. Getting out of the car, she didn't even bother with her house keys, using some of the secret superhuman strength that she had to forcibly turn the knob, opening the door but left the knob crushed.

She didn't notice, and hurried up the stairs to her study, going inside. There, she gatheredall the papers that had information relating to the project on them and shoved them into a briefcase meant to go into the safe in her lab as well, before heading to her computer. Fingers flying over the keyboard, Janet downloaded and erased files at the speed of lighting, codes and numbers swimming over her eyes, the glasses that she wore to keep up pretence slipping on her nose.

She was almost done when she heard a voice ask, "Auntie Janet?"

Janet turned and saw her niece, Silkie, standing in the doorframe, her crystal blue eyes wide and bleary with sleep, her shoulder-length hair mussed from sleep.

Janet smiled softly and walked to her niece before kneeling in front of her.

"Hey, Silkie,"Janet said softly. "What are you doing awake at this hour?"

"I had a nightmare. Could you tell me a story please?" Silkie inquired, rubbing her eyes.

"Sorry, Silk, but I can't tonight; I've got work to do. And besides, my friend Diane is going to come and take you back home to your parents. She'll be here any second, so pack your clothes."

"But I don't wanna go back tonight!" Silkie protested.

"Silkie, pack. Now," Janet ordered, already back at the computer while throwing Silkie her sternest glare.

Huffing, Silkie stormed to her, the four-year-old slamming the door to her bedroom behind her closed. When she heard that, Janet let out a sigh of relief before resuming her task, feeling bad but knowing it was the right thing.

 _Up until when I feel like she's ready, she can't know. She can't._

An hour later, Janet had finished, and it was then she heard a knock.

Walking out of her study, Janet opened the door, where she saw Diane standing there. Her short black hair was plastered to her face thanks to the rain, her black trench coat and grey scarf blowing in the wind, but her grey-blue eyes had a spark of determination and knowing in them.

"Is she ready to go?" Diane asked as she walked inside.

The answer to that question came as Silkie walked down the stairs, her suitcase bumping behind her.

"I take that as an 'Yes'," Diane answered her own question, causing Janet to chuckle. Diane smiled, before she kneeled in front of Silkie and said, "Hey Silkie. I'm Diane, your Aunt Janet's friend. I'm going to take you home, okay?"

Silkie didn't respond, but nodded.

Diane didn't say anything too, but took Silkie's hand and the two walked outside to Diane's car, Janet watching them before Diane drove them away.

As soon as they were out of sight, Janet walked back to her study and grabbed a picture frame. Inside was a photo of her and a man with thinning hair, glasses, and wearing a ratty lab coat that had "OsCorp" stitched on the upper left side of the coat.

"Richard Parker, for your sake and my own, I hope that someday, somehow, someone will discover the answers that we couldn't get and use them for good."

She placed the picture frame down and walked out of her study and headed into her room. Looking to see if anyone was watching, Janet opened a secret door in the wall, grabbed out something blue and black with a grey pattern on it, put it on, headed to her window, opened it… and swung out of it.

…

 _Meanwhile_

As Diane drove her home, Silkie looked bored out of the window.

She was upset that her auntie wouldn't let her stay and had asked this lady to drive her back home, but she was also curious, especially when her aunt had seemed strangely nervous, and very stern tonight, when she was usually a fun aunt who would let Silkie get away with nearly anything. Silkie sometimes preferred staying at her aunt's than at her own home; which was especially true right now.

For the last couple of weeks, her parents had been fussing over her slacker, teasing, annoying big brother Aaron. They always shared worried glances and jumped at the slightest bit of movement from him. Not only were they acting weird, but Aaron was too. He had stopped annoying her, which was a relief though, and seemed more worried about himself than teasing her. At night, she could hear her parents and Aaron talking and sometimes shouting when they believed she was asleep, but instead was eavesdropping, even though their words were too muffled. And every time they sounded panicked and were wondering when _she_ was going to be the "same" as Aaron, which horrified Silkie. Even her aunt was worried about Aaron too, and would cast sidelong glances at him whenever she visited them, or they visited her. It was quite puzzling to the blue-eyed girl, just as her aunt's behaviour tonight was puzzling as well.

Finally, they had arrived at Silkie's apartment block. Diane and Silkie got out of the car and entered the apartment block, going up to the floor Silkie's apartment was on(which was the twelfth floor)via elevator.

When the elevator _Pinged!_ , signifying they had arrived, the two got out of the elevator and headed to Apartment 24; Silkie's apartment.

Diane, standing in front of it, knocked on the door.

A _Crash!_ sound came, along with muffled cursing, and sounds of moving came before her dad opened the door, looking tired.

"Yes?" he asked.

"Hi, Mr. Arach? I'm a friend of your sister's, and she asked me to bring your daughter home," Diane told him.

Her father's eyes trailed to Silkie then, and widened at seeing her.

"Oh. _Oh._ But, I thought she was going to come home until tomorrow."

"Janet had some urgent stuff to do tonight, and wanted Silkie to go back home tonight."

"Well, okay, that sounds reasonable. And, thank you, Ms. uh…"

"O'Malley. Diane O'Malley."

"Thank you, Ms. O'Malley, for bringing Silkie home. Good night," her father thanked. He smiled lovingly at Silkie.

"Come in, sweetheart."

Silkie walked towards her father, who stepped aside to let her in. Before she fully walked in, however, she turned and whispered to Diane, "Thank you."

Diane smiled. "You're welcome, Silkie Arach."

Silkie smiled a half-smile as her father closed the door, leaving Diane to stand on the other side.

She let out a breath before going to the elevator, and walking out of it once it reached the main floor. She headed out of the building and to her car, but as she was about to go inside, she turned and looked at the rooftops, where, if you could squint hard enough, you would see a blue and black suited figure web-swinging from one rooftop to another, invisible in the night sky covered in dark clouds.

"Whatever you and Richard were planning with those spiders Janet, whatever progress you made in finding a cure to your family's curse, I just pray to God that nobody except yourself, or Silkie, or Claire or Aaron or even Richard's son Peter finds Roosevelt and finishes whatever there needs to be finished," Diane said, before she entered her car and drove back to her own home, her and Janet unaware of what was going to happen fifteen years from now… nor what was going on in New York City right now or was gonna happen to a certain Peter Parker and a certain Silkie Arach fifteen years from now.

 **So… hate it? Like it? Love it? Think it's the best Spider-Man fanfic you've ever read? Please say so in your reviews!**

 **Like I said, I have more experience in Danny Phantom fanfics, but I think I did pretty well for this prologue. And don't worry, the next chapter will come out soon.**

 **Please read and review!**

 **GhostWriterGirl our!**


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 2**

Chapter 1

 _Fifteen Years Later_

 _Chicago_

 _Beep! Beep! Beep! Bee-_

The startling, and quite obnoxious, ringing of an alarm clock was silenced by a clenched fist, the alarm clock shattering into pieces. The fist was connected to a pale, slender arm, which snaked back underneath the covers of a mattress lying on the floor of a bare room. The only shown part of the occupant huddled under the covers was a dark-haired head, the raven hair messed with sleep.

Suddenly, there was a sharp knock on the door a voice called, muffled by the wood, "Come on, up you get! We have a busy day today!"

Groaning, the person huddled under the covers sat up, rubbing her eyes.

"I know, I know! Just give me a minute!" the person shouted back as she woke up fully.

The figure was a nineteen-year-old woman, with messy, waist-long black hair. She wore a faded black T-shirt with the band name **Imagine Dragons** on it and blue workout shorts with white trimming. The woman stretched, the lean muscles in her arms rippling slightly, before she stood up and headed to the adjoining bathroom. Inside, there was a sink, a mirror, a shower, and in a glass on the sink, a single toothbrush and a tube of toothpaste.

Casually, the woman grabbed the toothbrush and toothpaste, squirting some toothpaste onto the toothbrush, and vigorously brushed her teeth for a couple minutes, before spitting it into the sink, before washing it out. She leaned down and opened the cabinet to grab some mouthwash, but frowned when she saw there was none there.

"Oh sure, leave a toothbrush and toothpaste, but take the mouthwash," the woman grumbled, slamming the cabinet door closed… and causing it to fly off it's hinges and crash into the wall.

"What was that?" a voice demanded as the dark-haired woman winced.

"Uh, nothing Mom!" the woman called back.

"Hmm. Didn't _sound_ like nothing."

"It was nothing, okay?!" the woman yelled.

"Okay, okay! But, cut the attitude, young lady. You may be an adult and in college, but as long as you're living under my roof, you're under my authority? Understood?"

"Understood," the woman said, as she looked at the mirror, crystal blue eyes relieved that her mother wasn't questioning her anymore.

"Okay. Now, get dressed. We're going to be leaving in a few minutes."

"Got it, Mom," the woman replied, still staring at her reflection. Letting out a deep breath, the woman braided her hair into a low plait, and pulled off a black elastic on her wrist, tying off the end, and tossed it over her shoulder. Even though most of her ebony hair was in her low plait, some of it hung loose in several strands of midnight hair. She scrutinised her reflection, and determined that was the best she could do, considering that she had no makeup, even though the makeup she used was light.

"Well, that's a little bit more me," the woman commented.

She turned to the bathroom's door, opened it, and walked out. The first thing she noticed was that the mattress and her demolished alarm clock were gone, and the second thing she noticed was that a set of clothes was waiting for her.

Checking to see that no one was looking, the woman grabbed the clothes waiting for her and began to undress out of her pyjamas and into her clothes. But as she pulled on a long-sleeved green shirt on, she felt a tingling sensation, like her whole body was on pins and needles, along with a sound that was like what pins and needles would probably sound like. The woman, standing up, walked to her window and watched as down below, a news helicopter trailed something far below… something dangerous.

Something she needed to stop.

"Honey? Are you okay? Are you nearly ready?" her mother asked.

The woman turned back to the door and answered, "Yeah, I'm okay. But, I might take a little while."

As she said that, the woman headed to the centre of the floor, where she yanked up a floorboard and pulled out a box. She looked at it, before glancing at the door, then the window, then back at the box.

"Oh, okay. We'll wait for you in the living room. Don't be too long, though; our flight leaves in an hour."

"Sure, Mom. I'll be ready in five minutes," the woman called back.

Her mother didn't respond, but she heard the sounds of heels clicking on the floor become fainter and fainter until she couldn't hear them anymore.

Listening for several more seconds just to be sure, the woman opened the box. Inside, was silvery white fabric with a red webbing pattern on it. And, lying on the top, was a white mask with a red webbing pattern and white eyeholes with red trimming around them.

"If I even _stop_ this in five minutes," the woman muttered, before she pulled out the mask and the fabric, which turned out to be a hooded spandex suit with gloves and boots. Checking again, the woman took off her shirt and shorts, pulling on the suit, the gloves and boots. She looked at the mask once, before she pulled it over her face.

"Sorry, Mom. But, duty calls," the woman said to herself as she pulled the hood over her masked head. She then walked to the window and slid it open. She looked in the direction where the news helicopter went, knowing that was where the crooks were.

"Where there's the news, there's the crooks," she quipped.

The masked woman then raised her hand, palm facing the skyscraper across from her apartment... and then a silvery strand of webbing shot out of her wrist.

It travelled across the space between where the woman had shot it and to the skyscraper she had aimed it, attaching immediately to it where it landed.

The woman, knowing the webbing will support her, was about to swing out and chase after the robbery… when a green and black blur swung past her.

"Hey cuz! No need to go after this one; I've got it all completely under control!" the blur shouted, the voice vaguely female, though it was muffled thanks to the mask the other web-swinging heroine wore.

The masked woman, whose eyeholes had widened slightly in shock, smiled underneath her mask.

"Thanks cuz!" she shouted back.

"Don't mention it! Just doing my duty of protecting Chicago!" the other heroine yelled back, her voice growing fainter as she web-swung towards the robbery.

The woman shook her head in amusement, but a proud smile was on her face underneath the mask.

"It seems like Chicago is in good hands," the woman noted to herself, pulling the window down. She then sighed and leaned against the wall next to the window, taking off her mask as she added, "Aunt Janet would be proud of the hero Claire's become."

Sighing again, the woman walked towards the box where her suit had been in. Taking off her gloves and boots as well, she put them back in the box and pulled oh her green shirt and faded blue jeans, effectively hiding her suit underneath.

As she pulled on some blue and white sneakers and her trademark white denim vest, the woman flicked her plait back over her shoulder, after it had fallen off when she had put on the mask.

And speaking of the mask…

The woman looked at it once, contemplating whether or not to place it into her jean pocket as she usually did. She looked at it further, before making her decision, placing it back in the box.

Another round of knocking came, and the obnoxious, familiar voice of her older brother Aaron asked her, "Scarlet, are you ready? Mom and Dad are ready to go to the airport; we're just waiting on you."

The woman, Scarlet, answered, "Yeah, I'm ready, dweeb. Tell Mom and Dad I'll be out there in a few secs, okay? And, you know I don't like being called Scarlet! Call me be my nickname!"

Aaron, who had scowled at being called dweeb, smirked, "Sure, _Scarlet_. I'll tell Mom and Dad right away."

With that, Aaron walked back to the living room where his and Scarlet's parents waited, Scarlet glaring at the door, hands clenched into fists.

"I'm going to kill him someday," Scarlet growled.

However, she turned back to the task on hand.

Grabbing a backpack filled with stuff she packed prior last night, Scarlet carefully placed the box that her gloves, boots and mask were in inside, before she zipped it close. Slinging it over her shoulder, Scarlet walked out of her former bedroom and headed to the living room, where her parents and brother waited for her.

"Ready to go now?" her father asked.

Scarlet smiled. "Sure, Dad. I'm ready."

Her parents smiled, before they faded into understanding looks as her mother said, "I understand if you're feeling nervous about leaving, sweetie. If you want, maybe you could-"

"No, Mom. Yes, I am feeling a little nervous, but Chicago's in good hands. Claire's going to do a good job protecting Chicago, like I did… and like what Aunt Janet did. Going for a final swing will be too much. I appreciate your concern, but I'm fine," Scarlet assured her mother, giving her a reassuring smile.

Her parents exchanged concerned looks.

"Guys, I'm _fine_. I'm totally cool with us moving to New York," Scarlet once again assured her parents.

She then walked towards the front door and added, "Besides, Chicago doesn't need Ghost Spider any more. Maybe New York won't need Ghost Spider too, what with that Spider-Man guy. Maybe I can live a normal life and occasionally help out?"

With that, Scarlet "Silkie" Arach opened the door and walked out, her family following after her, now ready for their flight to New York-and for their new lives in the Big Apple.

But Silkie was wrong.

New York needed both Spider-Man, and her superhero alter ego, Ghost Spider, after all.

She didn't know just how soon it would be.

…

 _Meanwhile_

In a warehouse on the outskirts of New York City, an ominous green glow lit up the inside as a woman, who seemed to be in a meditation pose as she sat on the floor, smiled.

"So, the little protégé of Ghost Spider, Arachna Girl, has now graduated to being a new hero of Chicago?" the woman asked herself.

Roaring came, and the woman saw in her peripheral version the hulking body of a massive, eight-legged beast standing in the abnormally dark shadows.

"Oh, don't worry, my dear pet," the woman assured, standing up and walking over to the shadowed beast.

It clicked and made guttural, high-pitched sounds, scuttling closer to the woman as she placed a hand on it's trembling head.

"Shh, my pet. Like I said, no need to worry. Arachna Girl and that pest, Ghost Spider, are still in Chicago, and that weakling Spider-Man will be easy to defeat," the woman said.

She smirked malevolently as she turned and faced the window. Her face and body was heavily hidden by shadows, but her grey eyes glinted wickedly as her smirk widened.

"That red and blue spider thinks he knows powerful enemies, what with that weak-minded Curtis Connors and that promising, but pathetic, Electro?" the woman asked to no one.

Suddenly, her hands lit up in green mystical energy as the supports of the crumbling warehouse creaked and the moans of the dead whispered through the air. The darkness stirred, and with the snap of the woman's fingers, an eerie green flame sprang up from the floor boards as green and white lightning arced overhead. The warehouse began to ripple, shifting between disarray and becoming what it once was at the peak of it's physical condition. It all combined, shadows twisting as the warehouse flickered between what was real and what wasn't. Emerald flames devoured wooden floors and walls, but did no damage, and lightning struck, but didn't burn. Vaporous forms of the dead formed, before they flickered away, and suddenly, everything not attached lifted into the air. The woman raised her hands, glowing with green energy, as the energy surrounding her right hands dissipated, and a long, curving blade of smoky black metal appeared, edges jagged, it's clouded grey handle gripped in her hand.

She smiled, and looked at two pictures, hidden in the darkness, eyes glowing a brilliant, luminous green.

"That Spider-Man and even Ghost Spider have no _idea_ how powerful of an enemy I can be, and how much destruction and anarchy I can inflict," the woman said ominously.

Suddenly, as fast as lighting, she threw the blade.

It arced through the air and landed straight through one of the pictures. Another blade followed it, finding it's target.

The air around the woman rippled and she disappeared, before reappearing in front of the pictures, glaring at them with hatred, especially the right one.

"Watch out, Spider-Man. Hex, the Sorceress of Darkness and Death, is coming for you, this city and then rest of this world. And not even Ghost Spider can help you stop me… not with my loyal pet on my side," the woman, Hex, told the pictures, before teleporting back to her pet, the display of her powers fading, leaving only the luminous green light, as it lit up the pictures… which were Spider-Man and Ghost Spider, who each had a blade in their heads.

 **So… what do you think?**

 **Don't worry, Peter will come in the next chapter; I promise.**

 **So, Silkie, who is now older, has a few secrets of her own now, hey? And she, and her family, are moving to New York.**

 **What do you think of Hex? She is my own OC villainess, and I hope that she was good enough for you guys, even though she'll have a more prominent appearance in the chapter after next.**

 **Anyway, I saw Avengers: Infinity War today! It was really awesome, but it was intense, and the ending actually made me cry. So, if you haven't seen it yet, you should totally go see it as soon as you can.**

 **Next chapter will come out soon, I promise.**

 **Please read and review!**

 **GhostWriterGirl out!**


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 3**

Chapter 2

 _New York City_

It was a cloudy day in New York. Heavy gunmetal-grey clouds hung thickly in the sky, threatening to release an onslaught of pelting rain at any second.

At a familiar cemetery, Peter Parker stood before his deceased girlfriend's, Gwen Stacy's, grave, still feeling as sad as the day that she had died, and watched her lifeless body being placed into the cold, hard dirt, next to her father's grave.

It had been six months since she had died. He still missed her laugh, and if he concentrated hard enough, he could still picture her working at OsCorp. He had failed in his promise to her father to keep her out of his life, out of Spider-Man's life. Even though he had moved on, it still hurt thinking about her, and even though college was good, it just wasn't the same without Gwen.

A silent tear slid down Peter's cheek as he laid a bouquet of lilies on her grave.

"For you, Gwen," he whispered, choking slightly on the sob building up in his throat. He wanted to stay by her grave longer, but one glance at his watch told him that he should leave if he wanted to make it to his college, Columbia University, on time.

Heading to a nearby mausoleum, Peter quickly changed into his Spider-Man suit and clambered up the wall of it so that he could web-swing off it and head to the college.

Peter let out a web-line, the strand of webbing sticking to a skyscraper close to the cemetery, and he swung away from the mausoleum to the skyscraper, web-swinging in the direction towards the university, hoping that his spider-sense wouldn't go off and he had to stop the threat and be even later to class than he already was.

As if the universe was playing with him, his spider-sense went off.

"Crap," Peter muttered. "Why now? Can't the bad guys give me a day off sometimes? Oh well, duty calls."

Swinging off to the direction his spider-sense went off, Peter landed on the wall of a skyscraper as he watched the scene below.

The police were chasing a runaway car, who was trampling other cars in the process of trying to get away from the police.

"Where have I seen this scene before?" Peter muttered, before swinging into action. Landing on the roof of the car, he knocked on the window. When the criminal looked, Peter used that moment to swing through the window, in an effort to take down the crook and regain control of the car.

"I don't think you should be driving this, sir," Peter quipped. The guy, noticing his passenger, tried to grip the steering wheel.

"Outta the way, Spider-Man!" the robber shouted as he struggled for control of the car. Peter joined in, and tried to get the steering wheel away from the crook. This caused the two to enter into a brief fight for control of the steering wheel.

"Let go of the wheel!" the robber shouted.

"Okay!" Peter said, letting go-and webbed the robber's hands to the wheel.

"Hey!" the criminal shouted, but Peter webbed the man's mouth shut.

Criminal dealt with, Peter got out of the car and leaped in front of it, placing his hands on the car's hood as he used his spider-strength to stop it forcefully. There was a screeching sound of rubber on asphalt as the car forcibly came to a halt, Peter gritting his teeth underneath the mask as he stopped the car.

Finally, it had ground to a halt. The rubber from the tyres had all but burned off, leaving the metal frames behind. Peter panted, exhausted from stopping the car, but relieved that he had both dealt with the crook and stopped the car without any casualties.

Looking up, Peter looked at the criminal, who's hands were still webbed to the wheel and said," Now you stay here and wait for the police while I go now, okay?"

Not waiting for a muffled response from the infuriated robber, Peter shot another web-line at a nearby skyscraper and swung away, quickly heading to Columbia University and praying to God he wasn't late.

A few minutes later, Peter arrived, the Spider-Man suit already concealed under his everyday clothes. Grabbing his bag, Peter rushed to the main campus building so that he could get to his first class of the day on time-and in the process collided with someone.

"OOF!" Peter exclaimed as he sent the person toppling to the ground.

"Hey, watch it!" an annoyed, feminine voice came from the person on the ground.

"Oh man, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry," Peter apologised. He extended a hand. "Here, let me help you up."

"No thanks, I can help myself up. I'm not some dainty china doll," the unidentified female figure responded rudely, swatting away Peter's hand lightly.

"Hey, you don't have to be so rude. I was just being nice," Peter stated back, getting a bit ticked off at this girl's rudeness.

"Oh. In that case, I'm sorry. Really. I just moved here. I don't easily trust, especially people I just met, and I'm kinda a bit prickly. Okay, I'm _very_ prickly," the figure apologised, before facing Peter fully, letting Peter see the most beautiful woman he had ever seen, just after Gwen, of course.

The girl had waist-long black hair that was tied in a low plait, several strands hanging out and crystal blue eyes. She wore a long-sleeved, pale green T-shirt, a white sleeveless vest, faded blue jeans, ratty sneakers, and a camera hanging off her shoulder. She had on light makeup and had her arms folded, eyes narrowed slightly.

"Are you going to stare at me all day like that, or are you going to move on?" the girl asked, before adding," I mean, the way you're staring at me is rather creepy."

"Oh, sorry," Peter apologised.

The girl rolled her eyes, but there was a smirk on her lips.

"There's no need to apologise. But, it's okay."

There was a spell of awkward silence and then the girl said, "Let's just start this all over again. Hi, I'm Silkie. Silkie Arach. And you are?"

While she introduced herself, Silkie stuck out a hand, which Peter shook.

"I'm Peter. Peter Parker. I sometimes take photos of Spider-Man," Peter introduced himself. Silkie gave a small smile.

"I didn't know you took photos; I'm a bit of a photographer myself," Silkie commented.

"Really?"

"Yeah. I actually took photos of my old city, Chicago's, resident heroes, Ghost Spider and Arachna Girl."

"Wait, Chicago has heroes?" Peter asked unexpectedly, a bit shocked at hearing that.

Silkie nodded.

"Yep. I actually have some of the photos still on my camera. Wanna see them after class? Then maybe you can show me your photos of Spider-Man," Silkie offered.

"Sure," Peter accepted. Silkie gave another small smile.

"Alright, I better head to class and-oh no."

"What?" Peter asked, having heard Silkie's groan.

"My brother's coming," Silkie answered, before an obnoxious voice yelled," Yo Scarlet! Come and give your big brother some love!"

Silkie groaned again while Peter turned to her and asked," Scarlet?"

"Silkie's my nickname; Scarlet's my real name," Silkie explained briefly. "Look, I've gotta go see what my annoying brother wants, and hopefully knock his ego down a few pegs. So, see you in class, and remember that lunch date!"

"Sure, um..."

"Silkie!"

"Right, um, sure, Silkie."

Silkie gave another small smile to Peter and a wave before heading to her brother. Peter waved back, before hurrying off to class, thinking about the lunch date.

 _No it isn't an actual date,_ Peter firmly told himself. _Just sharing your photos of yourself as Spider-Man to a girl who has photos of the heroes of the city she's from. It's just that, nothing more._

Though Peter couldn't help but look forward to it.

...

"What?", was my greeting to my dweeb of a big brother, Aaron.

My twenty-two-year-old big brother, Aaron Arach, smirked at me from his position against a wall.

He had the same black hair as I had, which we had inherited from our ancestor, the chestnut highlights in it glinting in the sunlight, crystal blue eyes with flecks of hazel in them gleaming as well. His army green, short-sleeved T-shirt that had the logo of **"Chicks dig guys in green"** was stretched thin against the muscles of his chest and arms, contrasting with the faux-designer black jeans and his scuffed trainers, a chain hanging loosely off his huge brown leather belt, cracked with age. His smirk grew wider as I strode up to him.

"Little Scarlet, don't you look lovely," he commented, hazel-blue eyes glimmering.

"Knock it off Aaron," I responded sharply, hands on hips. "Now, what do you want?"

My brother's eyes trailed to my much-loved camera that I always carried with me, in case I saw something and wanted to capture it in a photo. "Still taking pictures?"

"Don't avoid the question," I replied back, arms folded as I narrowed my eyes at him.

"I'm not avoiding the question, little Scarlet," Aaron said back breezily, staring up at the sky. "I'm just stating the obvious."

"Well, 'stating the obvious' doesn't answer my question," I snapped back. "Now, what do you want? And don't avoid the question this time."

"Fine, you've got me!" Aaron mockingly responded, raising his hands up, before his face grew a solemn look. "I need your help."

"Wow, are there pigs flying?" I asked sarcastically, looking up at the sky mockingly, "or does my slacker brother really need his genius, photographer, little sister's help?"

"The latter," Aaron replied grudgingly. "And it's really, really important."

"What is it?" I demanded, folding my arms again.

"I need help with a biology report that my professor handed out today. On the birds of New York. And could you, um, take some photos of the birds that I'm studying?" Aaron reluctantly asked, tone shy, surprising me a bit.

"You do realise you can always take photos of them with your phone, right?" I asked my brother skeptically.

"Yeah, but I want a professional to do those photos," Aaron stated.

"And you also know I'm only an amateur," I pointed out.

"Yeah, but an amateur can't capture those photos of, say, Ghost Spider?" Aaron hissed to me, referring to my secret identity as the elusive spider-themed super heroine.

I shrugged.

"Hey, I don't blame myself for not letting the police take my photo. I don't want to end up like Aunt Janet," I whispered.

Aaron nodded solemnly, knowing who I was referring to.

"I know, Silkie, I know," Aaron replied in a rare moment where he called me by my nickname, before smirking again. "But I also know that only you can produce magnificent photos."

"Oh, stop trying to butter me up!" I exclaimed, punching him lightly in the arm, hoping to remove that smirk off his face.

It didn't.

"Oh lighten up, Scarlet, have some fun," he jokingly responded, but in a split second, his face became solemn again.

"By the way, lay off."

"Lay off what?" I asked, genuinely confused.

"I mean, lay off on hitting on Peter Parker," Aaron elaborated, looking at me meaningfully.

"Aaron, I'm not hitting on Peter; we're just exchanging photos at lunch. It doesn't mean anything. And besides, a guy like him must have a girlfriend, right? He was probably rushing off to meet her when we crashed into each other," I informed my older brother, wincing as I remembered our collision just a minute ago. "So stop the overprotective big brother act, because you can relax; I'm sure Peter's already taken."

"Silkie, he isn't going out with anyone."

"Why?"

"Because his girlfriend, Gwen Stacy, died six months ago. I'm not sure he's moved on just yet, and he may not be ready to date anyone else yet. I'm trying to save you from a broken heart," Aaron revealed.

"Whoa, whoa, hold on Captain Overprotective, I don't like Peter! Like I told you earlier, we're just gonna exchange photos at lunch, that's all. And I didn't know about his girlfriend's death. How did it happen?"

"No one knows. But it happened two years after her father's death. I'm just warning you, that's all," Aaron continued, before switching to his slacker Aaron self. "And since you're here, can you do one thing for me, please?"

"What is it?" I sighed.

"Can you, I don't know, allow me to grace you with my morning commentary tomorrow?" Aaron asked me, a sly smile on his face.

"Absolutely not!" I refused, before turning on my heel and walking away.

"But Scarlet!" Aaron whined, following me. " _Scarlet_!"

"Shut up dweeb!" I responded, before deciding to do him a favour and shut him up myself.

Tucking my hands behind my back, I shot out a carefully concealed strand of webbing at my brother's mouth, effectively shutting him up.

Aaron tried to say something, but the words were muffled.

"What was that? Sorry, couldn't hear you; you must be on mute," I quipped, before using the still-attached strand to pull it off with my super strength, leaving Aaron to angrily yell," _SCARLET_!", behind me as I walked away, giving a little smirk to myself as I strode to my next class-Bioengineering-but thinking on Aaron's words from before, how he hinted that the lunch date may be my chance to hook up with a guy who's girlfriend died six months ago.

 _No, it isn't an actual date,_ I told myself as I strode off to class, thanking God that my spider-sense hadn't gone off at all today. _Just sharing pictures of yourself as Ghost Spider to a guy who has photos of Spider-Man. It's just that, nothing more._

Though I couldn't help but look forward to it.

 **I know, the start was boring, but I hope the rest of the chapter is good! Sorry about the lack of action, but these few chapters are here to get the story into gear, but I promise, the next chapter is going to have action in it!**

 **Also, from now on, I'll be doing Silkie's P.O.V in first person. Hope you amazing readers don't mind!**

 **So, a reviewer has mentioned about what this story's main villain's, my OC Hex's, goal is in this story. Well, I'll just say that it won't be revealed until later on in the story, to give it some mystery. Also, to the same reviewer, thank you so much for your awesome reviews! They made my day and made me feel so happy to know that I'm doing a good job with this story.**

 **I hope you wonderful readers enjoyed this chapter, despite the slow start, and that it rings true to the movies, and I didn't make Peter too OOC.**

 **Do I look like I own The Amazing Spider-Man film series or Peter? No, I don't, except for Silkie Arach/Ghost Spider and all my other OCs in this story and the story itself.**

 **Enjoy the next chapter when it comes out! Please read and review!**

 **GhostWriterGirl out!**


	4. Chapter 3

**Chapter 4**

Chapter 3

"Come on Parker, you can make it, you can make it! Come on, come on, come-"

 _Bring!_

"Damn it!" Peter cursed as the bell rang just as Peter rounded the corner to the hallway where his Bioengineering classroom was. "Dr. Octavius is going to kill me!"

"And why do you think he will?" a familiar voice asked.

Peter turned around to see Silki leaning against the nearby wall. Her plait was over her left shoulder and her right hand was cocked on her hip, an inquiring expression on her face. Her camera was still on her person. It seemed like she never let that thing out of her sight, along with her backpack slung across her right shoulder.

"Because I'm late to his class," he explained to her. At that, the inquiring expression disappeared off her face, replaced by a cryptic one.

"That can easily be fixed," Silkie replied cryptically, before walking down the hall to the classroom ad walking inside, leaving Peter to follow her in confusion.

"What are you-" Peter started to say, before a deep voice interrupted.

"Mr. Parker, Miss. Arach, why are you late?" Peter's and Silkie's Bioengineering teacher, Dr. Otto Octavius, questioned them. The rest of the class looked at the two latecomers.

"Oh, I was, um..." Peter stammered, knowing he couldn't tell Dr. Octavius the truth about why he was late(he was stopping crime as Spider-Man).

"It was my fault, sir," Silkie saved, her lie running smoothly off her tongue. "I'm new here, and Peter, being ever the gentleman, decided to show me around campus so that I didn't get lost on my first day. We lost track of the time, and we rushed to your class to try to make it on time, but the bell beat us to it."

"Well, Mr. Parker, since you were showing Miss. Arach around Columbia, you're off the hook for today," Dr. Octavius relented, causing some disappointed sighs from the students wanting to see Peter in trouble.

Grinning at Peter, Silkie slid into a seat behind Peter as he sat in the third row, waiting for the lecture.

As Dr. Octavius started, Silkie leaned forward and whispered," Told you being late for class could be fixed."

"You shouldn't have lied for me," Peter whispered back, pausing when Dr. Octavius asked him a question. Peter answered easily, as he knew the answer, before continuing the conversation.

"We all know that you wouldn't have gotten out of detention without my help, with 'we' being you and me," Silkie responded back, before Dr. Octavius asked," Miss. Arach!"

"Yes?" Silkie responded back, eyes on Dr. Octavius.

He asked her a question, and she answered it with ease, almost word for word. Looking around at her, she saw Dr. Octavius' skeptical look and nearly everyone gaping at her because of her nearly word-for-word answer.

"What?"

"Miss. Arach," Dr. Octavius started, "how did you get a near-perfect answer, when we haven't looked at anything in the textbook so far today?"

"I have a photographic memory," Silkie answered easily, eyes never leaving Dr. Octavius' face. "We covered this back at my last college, and I just remembered what I had covered back there."

"Okay. I'll take that as a valid reason," Dr. Octavius decided.

Silkie smiled a half-smile in relief.

"Oh, and also, Mr. Parker, could you see me after class?"

"Sure, Dr. Octavius."

After that, Peter and Silkie listened in to the lecture, diligently taking notes and answering difficult questions, with Silkie surprising both Peter, Dr. Octavius and the whole class with her almost word-to-word answers, but Octavius didn't question that she had a photographic memory, while Peter looked at her from his peripheral vision out of curiosity. With every moment he encountered Silkie Arach, the new girl kept on making him curious about her.

When the bell finally rang, ending the lecture, everyone left save for Peter, who remembered that Dr. Octavius wanted to see him after class.

"Sir?" Peter asked as he stood in front of the teacher's desk.

"Take a seat, Mr. Parker," Dr. Octavius said, which Peter did so, before waiting nervously.

"Peter, I'm going to be frank with you. You're facing a lot of heavy suff, I get it. What with Miss. Stacy's death, and your friend, Harry Osborn's, incarceration in Ravencroft, I understand. But it doesn't excuse the fact that you're constantly late to class, your grades are slipping, and you're always exhausted. Peter, we're worried about you. Is there something we should know, or your aunt should know?"

"No, nothing at all," Peter lied, after some time had passed.

"Well then, you can leave for your next class. See you the next time you have my class, Mr. Parker."

"Yes, Dr. Octavius," Peter responded as he left for his next class.

...

"So, what did Dr. Octavius want with you?" Silkie asked Peter at lunch from her position sitting cross-legged on top of the table, camera propped next to her.

"Nothing much. Just that he was worried about my grades and my constant lateness to my classes," Peter answered as he fiddled with his camera to find the photos. He smiled after finding them.

"Here," he said, handing the camera to Silkie. Silkie grabbed it and looked through the photos.

"These are good. Really good," Silkie complimented, still looking at the photos. "How did you get such good photos anyway?"

Peter shrugged.

"Right place at the right time," he lied. "Or he might like posing for me."

Silkie chuckled slightly.

"Maybe," she mused, before handing Peter her camera. "Here. These are the photos on Arachna Girl."

"What about the other hero, Ghost Spider?" Peter asked.

"Oh, sorry about that. I usually delete those after I print them out. I don't usually show them to anyone else other than my family and my best friend back in Chicago, so I usually delete them after I print them out. I think I still have them, though, so if you want to, maybe you could head to my place sometime this week or weekend, and I could show them to you," Silkie offered. "If you like, though. I won't force you if you don't want too."

"I actually would like to see them. They sound pretty interesting, and Ghost Spider sounds pretty cool," Peter responded, not noticing Silkie blush and smile at the indirect compliment towards her(well, her alter ego, but you get the point), before looking at the photos. "These are yours?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"Nothing. Except they are good. Really good. Maybe even better than mine," Peter admitted as he looked at one photo in particular.

It showed a feminine, masked figure in a green and black suit web-swinging through an unidentified street, most likely a street in Chicago. Her left hand was gripping a web-line, while her other hand was stuck out beside her, legs halfway tucked up under her. Her eyeholes were white, outlined in black, and her mask was green, with a grey web pattern. The web pattern continued on the green parts of her suit, such as the sides of her body, her arms, her gloves, her boots and probably the back. The front was black, and a grey spider emblem was on her chest. Peter couldn't see any web-shooters on the girl's wrists as he looked closely at the photo, but noticed something in the background.

Or actually, some _one_.

"Hey Silkie?"

"Yeah?" Silkie responded from where she was still looking at Peter's photos of Spider-Man on his camera.

"Who's the white-suited figure in the background of this photo?"

Peter saw Silkie stiffen, before she relaxed and scooted next to him.

"Oh, that's Ghost Spider. Strange, she must have been there when I took the picture. Huh. You've got keen eyes, Parker," Silkie commented, before going back to her original position.

Peter looked closer at the figure, Ghost Spider.

It was a definite female figure, but even though she was a little blurry, Peter could see that her colour scheme was white, silver, and red, and that she was wearing a hood over her mask. Other than that, Ghost Spider looked like, well, a ghost, as if she might disappear at any second now.

"Well, the picture is good," Peter admitted, handing back her camera.

"Thanks. Yours are too," Silkie replied, handing Peter's camera back too. She tossed back her plait, before asking," So Peter, what do you want to do when we get out of here?"

"I don't know actually; maybe become a photographer or a scientist. What about you?"

"Me? Well, I want to be a photographer; either a nature photographer or I could give my photos to journalists who want them, I don't know which. But I'm leaning more towards the latter, you know what I'm saying?"

"Yeah, I think I do," Peter muttered.

"Do you really sell your photos of Spider-Man to J. Jonah Jameson?" Silkie asked Peter unexpectedly, her blue eyes trained on him

"Yeah, I do," Peter admitted.

"And, I'm sorry about Gwen," she said.

Peter looked at her, frowning.

"How did you know that?"

"My brother, Aaron, told me. He thought that this-" she gestured to the table-"was an actual date. He wanted to make sure I wasn't heartbroken if I was hitting on you and you said no because you're still recovering from her death."

"What, that's crazy," Peter responded, stunned.

"I know! I can't imagine how he would react if you show up at our house to see the photos. He would probably think we're probably gong to make out in my room, which is idiotic as well," Silkie continued, laughing a bit. "Imagine us, a few days after we meet and barely know each other, making out. That would be a sight to see."

"I guess so," Peter muttered, before saying," Hey, if you want, we could head to my place. My aunt won't mind."

"You sure?" Silkie inquired.

"Positive," Peter assured her. "Anyway, is it true?"

"Is what true?"

"Is it true that you have a photographic memory?"

"As true as I am sitting here right now."

Peter turned back around.

"Wow. Just, wow."

"Look, you can ask my mom or my dad, heck even Aaron for pr-"

"I believe you; it's just hard to believe," Peter assured Silkie.

Before Silkie could respond back, Peter's spider-sense went off. Reacting quickly, Peter ran off to the opposite direction where everyone was running from, quickly changing into his Spider-Man suit, not noticing that Silkie had reacted similarly.

...

When my spider-sense went off, I acted without thinking.

Rushing off, I slipped behind a building wall, checking to see that no one was there.

After double-checking and triple-checking, just to be sure, I quickly began to pull off my shirt, since I wore my Ghost Spider suit underneath my shirt and jeans, before a voice called," You know, you should be more careful about where you go to finish changing into your Ghost Spider costume."

I jumped, startled, before realising who it was.

"Aaron! Don't scare me like that," I scolded, scowling at my big brother.

"Sorry; didn't know that Ghost Spider could scare so easily," Aaron quipped, before he looked at me with a look of utter solemness.

"What?"

"Go suit up. I'll cover for you," Aaron said. I stayed where I was, not believing him.

" _Go_!" Aaron hissed.

Reluctantly, I turned around, pulling off my shirt and jeans to reveal the silvery white, skin-tight suit with a red webbing pattern and a hood attached, white gloves with a red webbing pattern that I pulled onto my hands immediately, white boots that I pulled onto my feet after taking off my sneakers and socks, and for the final part, a white mask with a red webbing pattern and silver-rimmed white eyeholes.

When I was fully changed into my Ghost Spider suit, I threw my hood over my masked head and started crawling up the wall, camouflaging myself in the process, Aaron racing away to cover up my absence. I looked back, to see that Aaron was dissuading some nosy nerds about my disappearance. Aaron, knowing that I was looking at him, gave me a thumbs up and mouthed, _Go_ , to me, which I obeyed by continuing to scale up the wall.

A few minutes later, I flipped over the side and onto the roof. Dropping my camouflage, I raced to the other edge to where the picnic tables me and Peter and a few other college students had been sitting at, only to be met with chaos.

Students were milling about, along with half the faculty, racing around and screaming their heads off. My spider-sense went off, and I clutched my head as it intensified, groaning slightly.

"God, what's so dangerous that it's making my spider-sense act like this?" I wondered, but got my answer when I saw what was causing the danger.

"On second thoughts, I already know," I said to myself, as I recognised the person responsible for triggering my spider-sense.

Floating in the air, firing luminous green blasts of dark mystical energy, was a pale-skinned woman with long black hair tied into a tight braid, eyes glowing a luminous green, a black leather headdress of multiple horns on her head. She wore a form-fitting black leather jumpsuit that covered most of her body, thigh-high black leather boots, black leather fingerless gloves that reached to her shoulders, and a black sleeveless dress that split at the front and trailed at the back with green accents. There was black nail polish on her talon-like nails, and she had smoky black eyeshadow which made her eyes, which were usually a dark, thundery grey colour, glow even brighter, black lipstick and onyx earrings swinging from her ears. She laughed manically, as she raised her hands and several things lifted at once, before she threw them at screaming people, the shadows tightening around their feet, a grin of twisted glee on her face.

I knew that power-hungry witch anywhere, the so-called Sorceress of Darkness and Death.

Hex.

And she had brought a friend.

Adding to the already-existing carnage was an _enormous_ spider, and I mean enormous. It was completely black, with silver stripes along its abdomen and eight, massive legs. It's eight eyes were completely pitch black, and it snapped its huge pincers as it roared, creating more terror and damage to what had been a peaceful lunch,

Behind the mask, I gulped nervously at seeing the huge spider. I should have been asking myself how Hex had managed to get, let alone tame, a spider as massive as this one, but my thoughts were all thinking one thing: _I am seeing the consequence._

I knew I had to bring myself out of it, but I couldn't. My mouth had gone dry as my palms suddenly grew sweaty, barely able to keep my fear in. I knew I had to stop Hex and her pet, but seeing the spider returned a fear that I thought I had buried, a fear that I hadn't paid attention to since the night of my aunt's death. The fear of the one negative of my spider powers.

The fear that I couldn't let keep me paralysed to the rooftop while people were in danger of dying down there and I still had a chance to stop it.

"Pull yourself together, Silkie," I told myself. "Don't think about it. The spider is just another bad guy; it isn't a show of the consequence. Pull yourself together and go down there, defeat Hex and her pet, and save those people's lives. You can do it, Silkie Arach. You're _Ghost Spider_. You've faced tougher things than this, including Miss. Halloween Reject floating over there. Don't be afraid. You can do this. You. Can. Do. _This_."

Taking another breath, I steeled myself for the inevitable fight, readying myself for it. When I felt like I could, I resumed the usual routine I did when facing a bad guy; observe, fight, wrap up the baddie. I quickly camouflaged myself, and observed the situation below.

So far, the teachers were doing the smart thing and having everyone, including themselves, flee the scene so that no one was caught in any of Hex's deadly magical attacks and the spider's huge legs and crushing pincers. Good. Because if there were innocents around when I fought these two that I accidentally harmed while fighting Hex and her minion, there won't be just _one_ giant spider on campus...

Feeling confident, and pushing the fear I had felt back, I prepared to shoot out a web-line and swing down so that I could fight and stop those two… only for someone else to beat me to it.

"Hey Witchie! Why don't you float down here and-whoa, that's one huge spider!" a slightly familiar, though still unidentifiable, voice demanded. I turned my head to look in that direction, shocked to see a person I would never expect to see here, and feeling kinda glad that he _is_ here, to help me stop Hex and her minion.

A guy in a red and blue suit with a black webbing pattern on the red parts was crouching on another picnic table, eyeholes wide at the enormous spider in front of him. There was a black spider emblem on his chest and a red one on his back. He looked he had been prepared to fight, but after seeing the spider, was taken back a bit, obviously not expecting to fight this massive spider. I would know that masked figure in that red and blue suit from Peter's photos and the reports about him anywhere.

Spider-Man.

He was here.

Seeing that everyone was gone, I dropped the camouflage that I had resumed to observe the situation after calming myself of my fear-attack, shot out a web-line, swung down, landed on a picnic table and whistled sharply to get Spider-Man's attention, hoping not to get the spider's or Hex's attention as well. At least, not yet anyway.

"Hey Spider-Man!" I shouted. The second spider-hero here jumped a bit before turning to face me, eyeholes even wider, if that was even possible.

"Me?" he stupidly asked.

"Yes you, smart guy," I answered back sarcastically. "Any more dumb questions you wanna ask me?"

Spider-Man shook his head, understandably terrified at my sharp tone and the look I was giving him, even with the mask.

"Good. Now let's beat this witch and spider's butts," I stated simply, before sending a web-line at the spider, striking it's gargantuan body. The creature roared before facing me, fury in it's eight eyes.

"Yeah that's right, I'm the one you want. Come get me!" I shouted, baiting it, before darting away as soon as the spider struck at me with one of it's legs, missing me but destroying the table.

Hex, at that point, noticed me as well.

"Ghost Spider! Why are you here?! You're supposed to be in Chicago, helping that protégé of yours defeating lesser criminals!" Hex demanded, fury in her eyes. Faintly, I could hear the building rumble as Hex's destructive magic began to affect it thanks to her anger.

"I wanted to see New York," I quipped, flipping out of the way when the spider sent another of it's legs at me, hoping to God that Hex's fury-fuelled destruction magic wouldn't destroy the college. "And let's admit, I just can't stay away from you, Hex."

I sent a web-line at her, only for Hex to dodge it and sent a magical energy blast at me in retaliation, which I dodged as well.

"Missed!" I crowed-only to be hit right in the chest by a picnic table that had been thrown by Hex's telekinesis. I crumpled to the ground, holding my chest in pain.

"I _never_ miss," Hex smirked.

Despite the pain in my chest, I stood up and retorted, "And neither do I!", as I lifted up the lower part of my mask and began to make a sound that sounded like the combination of coughing and hacking up the human version of a hairball. Soon, I could feel something _very_ different from saliva filling up my mouth, a bitter taste, as I continued hack-coughing it up. When I felt that I had enough, I looked straight at Hex, prepared my shot, opened my mouth, aimed… and spat the venom that I had created straight at Hex's mouth. However, the witch telekinetically stopped my attack, and let my venom attack fall harmlessly to the ground.

"Damn it!" I muttered, pulling the lower half of my mask back down, not willing to try spitting more venom at Hex.

The witch grinned, her hand glowing once again with green magical energy, before she fired it at me. I yelped and somersaulted out of the way, barely avoiding it.

"Hey, hey, easy with the magic blasts!" Spider-Man shouted, after having to flip out of the way of the blast I had dodged, which had come his way.

I winced. I had completely forgotten that Spider-Man was also part of this fight against Hex and the spider.

"I wasn't aiming for you; I was aiming for the other bug here," Hex calmly retorted, before firing off another round of attacks at me, both magical blasts, telekinetic attacks, elemental attacks of fire, electricity and wind, and attacks of shadows, all of which I easily avoided, even though some had me slightly worried.

"Only aiming at me, Hex? I would be flattered, if it was only me around. But since Spider-Man is here, why don't you give him one of your magic blasts too, huh Hex? Just to show that you care too."

"Hey, Ghost Spider, are you _trying_ to make me a target!?" Spider-Man hissed as he landed beside me after avoiding the giant spider's legs. He sent out a few webs at it's eyes, temporarily blinding it.

"No, I'm making you a distraction for Hex and her little pet so that I can take them," I hissed back, before shouting," Hey Hex! Wow, you're such a lousy shot that you couldn't catch a fly even if it's right in front of your face!"

Hex shrieked in rage, before sending another barrage of blasts at us, as a dangerous line snaked through the ground. We leaped out of the way, Spider-Man landing on another picnic table(what was up with these picnic tables!?)while I landed on a wall.

The spider used it's front legs to tear off the webbing blindfold, roaring in rage and lunging towards me.

I yelped, before flipping over, narrowly avoiding the spider's pincers.

"Woah, Hex, does your pet spider have a bad temper or what? Maybe that's why you two are a perfect match!" I quipped, shooting out a web-line and swinging away to avoid the huge spider's legs.

"Wow, you need to shave those legs!" I commented, before sending a few web-lines at the spider's legs. "Here, let me do it for you!"

Using my super strength, I pulled on the ends of my web-lines, managing to make the huge spider topple over.

With a thundering crash, the Goliath of a spider fell, roaring pitifully. Wasting no time, I leapt onto the spider, quickly using my webbing to wrap up the spider like a Christmas present. The sound of blasting and web-lines going off told me that Hex and Spider-Man were still fighting.

Good.

I didn't need Hex's attention on me at the moment now.

I finished wrapping up the spider and lowered myself in front of it's beady black eyes.

"You've been a naughty spider," I taunted, mock-tutting. I was about to knock it out with a punch when a familiar voice in my mind cried, _Silkie, it's me!_

I faltered, staring in shock at those black eyes in the spider's head, not believing it.

"A-Aunt J-Ja-Janet?" I whispered, my voice trembling.

 _Yes, it's me Silkie! Hex has me imprisoned, trapped in this body. Please, find a way to break this curse, please, Silkie. Please!_

I nodded shakily, before leaping off. At that, the spider-no, my _aunt_ trapped inside it- broke free of the restraints I had placed on it. It roared again, before scuttling away to rejoin Hex.

Hex, catching sight of it retreating to her, shouted, "We'll meet again, Spider-Man and Ghost Spider! And when we do, I will _not_ hold back!"

" _That_ was holding back?" Spider-Man asked her.

Hex frowned, before she used her weapon-summoning powers to throw a dagger with jagged edges at Spider-Man, which nearly landed in his head if he hadn't caught it with his spider-reflexes. Judging by the eyeholes that were larger than regular, I could guess that he was pretty shocked about the dagger.

"Indeed it was, Spider-Man. For that was just a _taste_ of what I can do. I'm much more powerful than you realise," Hex said ominously, before looking at me and smiling malevolently. "Even _you_ don't realise the full scope of my power, even though we have been mortal enemies two years after you showed yourself as a 'hero' and we first battled, Ghost Spider."

I gave Hex a scalding glare, my fists clenching and unclenching.

Hex smirked, knowing exactly how to aggravate me, before she continued speaking.

"When we next meet, you pathetic _heroes_ will see just _exactly_ how powerful I can be," Hex said cryptically, before floating into the air.

She mock-waved at us before she teleported herself and my aunt, cursed in the spider's body, out of here and back to whatever lair Hex has in New York.

I turned to Spider-Man, panting, still gripping my aching chest from when Hex had telekinetically threw a picnic table at me. I looked at him levelly.

"Uh, thanks for the help. But you didn't need to do it. I'm more than capable of taking care of those villains by myself. But, the help was nice. So, uh, thanks. Again. But I've got to go now. See you on the flip side, or when those two show their faces again," I said, rambling slightly, before shooting out a web-line and swinging away, going back behind the building again.

After checking again that no one was there, I pulled off the mask, boots and gloves, pulled on my shirt, jeans, and shoved my mask, boots and gloves into the very bottom of my backpack. Pulling a strand of raven hair out of my face, I walked back to the scene of the battle, trying to act casual and not give away my secret identity, when Aaron yelled," Scarlet!"

Groaning, I headed towards Aaron, who had a grim expression on his face.

"Hey dweeb. What's up?" I asked.

"Let's go home," he hissed. I frowned.

"Why?"

"Look, I already told our teachers that you're feeling a little sick and that I'm going to take you home, okay? Come on Scarlet."

Without any of my say, he grabbed my arm and dragged me off campus, and straight to our home. He glanced at me worriedly when I hissed in pain and rubbed my chest. My regenerative healing factor was already at work, healing whatever had broken when the picnic table had slammed into my chest besides seriously winding me and giving me one the biggest shots of pain I have ever had in my superhero career, but it would be wiser if I checked to see exactly what type of injury it was and treat it properly.

Even though I felt that Aaron taking us both back home was, although slightly needed for my injury, irritating, and even though I wanted to stay behind and check to see if Peter was okay, despite that I saw him running away when I had left to go suit up in my Ghost Spider suit, I also knew that I could use this time to look up on more information on my ancestor.

And our family curse.

 **So, that's the first chapter!**

 **I hope there was enough action in that chapter for you. I also hope I'm getting Peter's personality right; I hate it that I'm doing a character that isn't my own, and I'm not doing them justice by not keeping them in-character.**

 **Anyway, it's starting to get interesting, and yes, I can confirm that the huge spider and Hex's minion** _ **is**_ **Silkie's Aunt Janet, fully showing you the consequences of Silkie, Claire, Aaron, Silkie and Aaron's father, and their family on Silkie's father side's spider powers, which I will reveal how that can happen next chapter. Also, more information on Janet will be revealed near the end of this story, including a big twist.**

 **In case you all want to know, I am not going to be using Mary Jane Watson as a love interest for Peter; instead, Silkie is going to be Peter's new love interest in this story, as I kinda feel that Mary Jane is overused. Nor am I introducing her at all, in this story or any other sequels to this story(sorry MJ fans!)**

 **Back to Silkie being Peter's love interest; their romantic feelings for each other are going to be slowly developed, not rushed or anything. I do know that Peter is still recovering from Gwen's death and Silkie doesn't want to find love right at the moment, as she has a goal in mind that deviates from being romantically involved with anyone, so they'll both become friends, with neither having a crush on the other, and them becoming a couple, until later on. I don't know if it's true here in the Spider-Man fandom, but some of the Danny Phantom fanfics in the fandom have a DannyXOC pairing, and the OC is sometimes a complete Mary Sue, with the Mary Sue OC and Danny falling in love with each other and becoming a couple straight away. It's part of the reason why I sometimes steer clear of fanfics that have Danny being paired with an OC. I'm not saying _all_ Danny Phantom fanfics have a Mary Sue OC in them(DarkFoxKit's Danny Phantom fanfics My Brother's A Ghost and We Are Phantoms are examples of a really well-done OC), and I have OCs in some of my DP fanfics too, so I'm not completely _against_ OCs. Just saying that some that have the DannyXOC pairing have the OC a complete Mary Sue, and I stay clear of them because I don't like a Mary Sue OC. But I'm trying to not let that be the case of this fanfic, where there ****_is_** **a PeterXOC pairing, and I'm trying to not let Silkie become a Mary Sue. I think I'm doing well, but if you think I could improve on Silkie, please kindly tell me in your reviews and I will improve Silkie's character and make her more flawed.**

 **Anyway, big paragraph of semi-ranting over, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I don't own The Amazing Spider-Man film series, that belongs to Marvel and Sony.**

 **Enjoy the next chapter when it comes out! Please read and review!**

 **GhostWriterGirl out!**


	5. Chapter 4

**Chapter 5**

Chapter 4

The abandoned train station was just as Peter remembered it-dark and dusty, with the rusted parts of long-forgotten trains covering the dirt-packed ground, with bits of corroded metal tracks beside them. Going past the obstacles blocking any other person from the long-forgotten old, secret station that hid Peter's father's secret lab, Peter eventually arrived at the place where Peter's father had secretly worked on the spiders and where he had left the video message of him saying what really happened that caused him and Peter's mother to run and leave him with his aunt and uncle, and also admitting that the human DNA he put in the spiders was his own, which Peter had found six months ago, along with the lab.

And which Peter needed to watch again to check something.

Putting in one of the coins that would bring Peter's father's train-lab to him, Peter waited for it to arrive. As soon as it did, Peter stepped in and headed straight for the old computer nearly covered in cobwebs, where his father's last message to him was on it. Finding the video and pressing " **PLAY** ", Peter watched the message replay, running through every word to make sure he didn't mishear anything, especially at the part where only Peter could be the only successful cross-species genetics hybrid because of his father's DNA in the spiders, confusing Peter.

 _If I was the only one to survive the cross-species genetics test, how come Ghost Spider and that other hero, Arachna Girl, have spider powers as well?_ Peter thought, confused.

Far away from the station, however, the answer to his question was typed on a computer owned by a certain raven-haired woman...

* * *

 **Arachne**.

That was the only word I typed up before an array of sites dedicated to the supposed mythological cursed weaver popped up. I read through every one, especially the places where it concerned the curse on her. Behind me, every Greek mythology book I could find in every secondhand bookshop I've been in was spread open to the pages concerning Arachne. All this information wasn't for some folklore/mythology test at college. This was the reason why I had my powers, why Claire had her powers, why my whole family on my dad's side has these powers.

Arachne wasn't just a mythological figure.

She was, in fact, my ancestor.

I had inherited my powers from her; my whole family, save for my mom and uncle, did. I had these spider powers inherited from Arachne: keen senses; quick reflexes; wall crawling; super strength, speed, balance, reflexes, stamina and agility; I can generate my own organic webs; hallucinogenic venom; the good old sixth sense or "spider-sense" that always never failed to alert me to danger; regenerative healing factor; the ability to summon two extra pairs of spider legs in my back on command; and I could camouflage myself into my surroundings. However, these powers came with a cost-if I so much as endangered an innocent person, let alone killed that person, accident or not, I would become a giant, rampaging, monstrous spider; just like my Aunt Janet. Same with Claire, Aaron, my father and all of the Arachs before me.

It was the Arachne curse; _my_ family curse. A curse that couldn't be broken once enacted.

And so, I looked up almost obsessively on my computer and leafing through these tons of books to find a way to break this curse, to find a cure for it before the same fate that happened to Aunt Janet happened to me, or to my cousin, brother and father. However, so far, nothing had come up.

Admitting defeat for today like the million other times I have searched for a way to break the curse, I pushed away from my desk and computer, stretching my arms and deleting the websites on my ancestor and the curse our whole family shared, erasing everything from my computer's history.

Standing up, I headed to the wall of my bedroom, and crawled up it and onto my ceiling till I arrived to the skylight in the ceiling and to the web-hammock positioned under it; I had chosen a room in the attic almost immediately after we first moved in, and after we had cleaned it up and had moved the stuff inside it that the previous owners didn't want out of there, it was actually a pretty nice room. Setting to work, I had made a web-hammock under the skylight, stashed with a few novels, a niche for the eventual homework and assignments from college, my photos sitting on a ledge from the skylight with most being of my family, or of me and my best friend Bridget, or of photos that I took myself with my camera, and some emailed pictures and paintings from Claire(Claire was the artist in our family). It was a place I could chill out and be a kid for a while-or, well, an adult who hasn't yet moved out of her parents' house.

After settling in, I shot a strand of webbing at a can of soda, then at my iPod with my earphones attached, bringing them up here. Popping the soda, I took a long drink while putting my headphones in. Pressing " **Shuffle** ", I listened as my favourite singer, Katy Perry's, song _Chained To The Rhythm_ , played, singing along to the lyrics with a semi-bad singing voice.

Just kicking back and being just a normal person.

Suddenly, my phone rang.

Pausing the song, I jumped out of the hammock and landed on my bed, grabbing my phone off the desk and answering it.

"Hello?" I asked.

"Oh, hey Peter," I continued, smiling slightly. "What's up? The photos of Ghost Spider? Okay... No, no, Peter, it's okay. I'm just not used to people other than my family and best friend seeing my photos of Ghost Spider. So, when do you want me to show you the photos? On Saturday? Sure, that's cool with me. Do you want me to walk over to your place, or do you want to pick me up? Want me to walk to your place? Sure, I'll do that. Can you give me the address, please? Okay, I'll write that down. Okay, thanks Peter. Twelve o'clock, right? Okay. I'll be there, Peter. See you in a few days. Bye Peter."

I quickly ended the call and sat down on the floor and picked up a random book and read it, at about the moment my mom entered the room.

"Hey Silkie," she greeted.

"Hey Mom," I greeted back from my position on the floor, skimming over the information about my ancestor in one of my many Greek mythological books.

Mom sat beside me before clearing a few books away, putting an arm around me.

"Trying to find a way out of the curse?"

"Mm-hm," I mumbled, eyes glued to the page.

"I heard what you were saying on the phone. Who's this Peter guy?"

"Oh, just this guy I met at college today. He takes photos of Spider-Man, actually."

"Really? I thought that guy was hard to spot."

"Well, he has some pretty decent pictures of the hero; we traded photos at lunch."

"Did you show him your Ghost Spider photos?"

"No; I made a point to delete those after I printed them out, though I'm going to show him them on Saturday. And before you go into panic-stage, he doesn't know that I'm Ghost Spider. Anyway, he's actually really nice and pretty friendly. Although, I caught him looking at me curiously in Bioengineering because of my answers, along with Dr. Octavius and half the class."

Mom laughed.

"They probably didn't believe you had a photographic memory, right?"

"That's correct. I thought that Dr. Octavius was going to ask Peter to check to see I wasn't using my textbook for my answers."

"Silkie, I heard about the fight at the college. What happened? Are you okay? Di-did the curse get enacted?"

"Mom, everyone got out before I fought Hex. But Mom, we _need_ a cure to the curse. I can't be a superhero like Aunt Janet if I don't stop worrying about hurting or even accidentally killing someone. I need an antidote to this curse- _before_ it's enacted."

"I know, baby, I know," Mom whispered, wrapping me up in a hug. "Your dad knows, your brother knows, hell, even Claire knows. And your aunt knew the risks too when she became a hero. And you do too. And we will find a cure. Wait, Silkie. Wait, and the cure will come. We can beat this curse, Silkie. We can beat it."

I nodded, letting my mom comfort me.

"Thanks, Mom. I can always count on you to make me feel better," I told her, feeling a bit better.

Mom gave me a small smile.

"Glad to see I still have the magic touch. Now, dinner's going to be ready soon. We're having corned beef with cabbage, gravy and mashed potato; your favourite."

"I'll be there soon!" I promised, eyes glazing over at the thought of dinner as my stomach rumbled.

Mom chuckled, standing up and preparing to leave.

"I am glad to see you still have an appetite. See you down there in a few minutes, Silkie."

"See you," I responded back.

Mom closed the door, and I sighed. I knew I should have told my mom that Janet wasn't dead, that she was simply trapped in that cursed form, but I couldn't find the words to say so. And, a little part of me wanted to keep the fact that my aunt was alive under wraps until I could break the curse upon her, like I was trying to break the curse on me and avoid turning into a giant spider if a civilian was in the crossfire of one of my fights against my enemies and the curse was activated. It was one of my biggest fears.

I shivered, thinking back to that fear-attack back on the roof. I had never felt that much fear in my life before, except for when my father told me about the curse when my spider powers activated. I had felt so much fear then that I had to train myself to keep my fear at bay during my fights so that it wouldn't cripple me and could cause the curse to activate. It surfacing today… it had made me realise that I wasn't as tough as I thought I was, that despite all my best efforts to convince myself, that fear could still get me just as easily as the curse could.

And I couldn't ignore that just as much as I couldn't ignore the curse hanging over me like a black cloud.

Wanting to drag myself out of those semi-depressing thoughts, I stood up, intending to go to dinner-and then my spider-sense went off.

I groaned inaudibly.

 _What now?_ I thought to myself as I quickly changed into my Ghost Spider suit and swung out of my room and towards the danger, aggravated that I might be late for dinner.

 **So, that's the chapter done!**

 **I am so, so sorry about the long wait! But,** **I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and that no matter how bland it'll get, or how long it will take to update, I will not, and I repeat, will not give up on this story, and i'm thinking of a possible sequel!**

 **So, next chapter is Silkie heading to the danger she sensed with her spider-sense, with Peter also there as his spider-sense also went off. However, in that chapter, Peter is starting to think that Ghost Spider may not be a hero after all.**

 **So, as you can see, I am doing those line-break things, just to make things a bit easier. I hope you lovely readers don't mind.**

 **And no, like I said before, I do not own The Amazing Spider-Man movies, just Silkie, her family, and this story.**

 **Anyway, see you next chapter!**

 **Please read and review!**

 **GhostWriterGirl out!**


	6. Chapter 5

**Chapter 6**

Chapter 5

Peter had just left the abandoned Roosevelt station when his spider-sense went off.

Wasting no time, Peter changed into his Spider-Man suit and web-swung over to the danger, landing a few feet away on the roof of a skyscraper, looking at the scene below.

There were police cars and police everywhere, surrounding a man holding a terrified woman hostage and a gun at her head, shouting demands at the police, while another man, also similarly armed, threatened to start firing at the crowd held off by a metal fence.

It looked like a situation that was about to end badly if he didn't intervene soon.

Without thinking, Peter went into action, not knowing that someone else was watching.

* * *

I had a few minutes before Spider-Man showed up, and after looking at the fight, decided immediately to not get involved.

Turning on my camouflage, I felt bad about sitting on the sidelines, knowing it was something Aunt Janet wouldn't have never allowed herself to do in my position. But, I couldn't endanger or accidentally kill any of these innocents if I got involved, lest I enact the curse.

So me not getting myself involved with the situation was the only option.

I crouched on the skyscraper roof, growing increasingly worried that the situation hadn't diffused on it's own, even when the police seemed to be agreeing with the terms the pair of criminals were giving them.

If the police hadn't rescued the hostage in five minutes, I was going in there and risk enacting the curse so that the hostage or any of the other civilians held at bay from the dangerous scene by the metal fence didn't get hurt or killed if the criminals decided to open fire and the police were forced to retaliate, until a familiar red and blue blur swung in and landed on an adjacent skyscraper roof.

Checking that I was still camouflaged, I watched in silent observance as Spider-Man went into action and prepared to fight the criminals and rescue the hostage.

With my enhanced hearing, I listened in to the conversation happening down below on the street.

"Hello there! Why don't we just put down all the guns, let the woman go, and talk in a civilised manner?" Spider-Man offered up as he swung down and landed between the police and the gunmen.

 _What are you doing, Smart Guy?_ I thought as I changed to a sitting position, propping my chin on my hands as I watched the scene unfold.

Apparently, what Spider-Man had told them hadn't made it through those criminals' thick skulls or they didn't care at all, but they did start to open fire on him. Spider-Man dodged all the shots while the police ducked down to avoid getting injured. One, a woman with short, curly, red hair started to shoot back at not only the criminals, but Spider-Man, who had managed to rescue the hostage and whom had managed to run behind the safety of a police car.

"Oh come on! Why are you shooting at me? I'm not the bad guy here!" Spider-Man shouted indignantly.

"I don't care! All you masked vigilantes-you, Ghost Spider, Arachna Girl and every other person like you-are putting innocent people at risk as far as I am concerned!" the woman shouted, still shooting at him.

"Lady, seriously, I'm not the bad guy here! I thought the police had gotten over that!" Spider-Man protested, while also managing to web up the real bad guys here.

After dodging another round of bullets, Spider-Man managed to shoot off a web-line and managed to swing out of there, landing back on the original skyscraper he landed on before. He breathed out a huge sigh.

"Man, I thought they had stopped trying to shoot me on sight," he muttered to himself, before turning around-and freezing in place.

"Ghost Spider!?" he exclaimed.

Looking down, I saw that I had become so focused on the fight, I hadn't noticed my camouflage fading away.

"Shoot," I muttered. I've been caught.

* * *

"Hey, Ghost Spider! What are you doing up there?" Peter asked as he web-swung over to the former heroine of Chicago. He was confused about why she didn't show herself earlier and help him before. He could have used her help, especially in getting the hostages away to safety. It was even more confusing that even though she helped him battle that ginormous spider and that witch, Hex, back at the college. she wouldn't move in and help get the hostages away to safety, even when she appeared to have arrived before Peter.

"Avoiding a possible fight, Smart Guy, and letting the police do their jobs. Why else would I be here?" Ghost Spider replied in a sarcastic tone.

"But why didn't you get involved? I could have used your help," Peter pressed, wanting answers.

Ghost Spider sighed, raising a gloved hand to rub her masked forehead.

"Look, why do want to know? Police handle stuff like this practically everyday. Why is today different?"

"Because it's our job to help people!" Peter exclaimed, stunned that Ghost Spider didn't get that. She'd been protecting the citizens of Chicago with the other hero, Arachna Girl, for possibly longer than him, if Silkie's information was correct. Why wouldn't she help him stop a hostage situation?

Ghost Spider looked like she was getting very ticked off, even with the mask on. Her fists were visibly shaking, and Peter could swear he saw rage vibrate off her.

"Look, maybe I'm not the hero that you are. Maybe I only go after the super villains because I don't want something to happen to me! Something that's really terrible, and once it's happened, it can never be reversed!" Ghost Spider nearly shouted, her eyeholes narrowed in barely contained anger.

"But why still help people if you only go after the super villains? Why bother? Why-" Peter pushed, but was stopped when Ghost Spider unleashed a sort of primal scream, filled with rage and frustration and other emotions.

Peter scooted back a bit, feeling slightly regretful for asking those questions.

And was knocked back even further.

Recovering from the sudden force, Peter looked up from where he had been pushed back several feet and dangerously close to the edge; only to be shocked even further.

"What the…" he gasped out.

Ghost Spider was crouched in front of him, arms wrapped around herself, but around her, circling her… were four, long spider legs.

They were a silvery white colour, with black stripes running through them, and were seven feet long, longer than him. Two of them were wrapped around the quivering masked girl, while the other two were pointed straight at him.

Peter immediately guessed the extra legs were what had knocked him back.

Standing up, he watched nervously as the legs slowly pulled back from pointing at him to surround the still-shaking masked girl.

Walking to her slowly, Peter asked shakily," Are… are you okay?"

At that, the shaking stopped, and the extra legs vanished.

Ghost Spider turned to face him, uncontrolled fury, frustration and other emotions visible by her body language, even though the mask hid her face.

" _LEAVE ME ALONE_!" Ghost Spider screamed, before sending out a web-line at him.

"AH!" Peter yelped, dodging out of the way.

Ghost Spider, after hearing him yelp, widened her eyeholes in shock.

She quickly stepped away from Peter, eyeholes still wide.

"I-I'm sorry," she stammered out. "I-I don't know what came over me. Just… just leave me alone."

At that, she turned around and shot out another web-line, this time to a building.

Before she could swing away, Ghost Spider turned around, eyeholes their normal size again.

"If… if you want to learn _why_ I can't get involved in situations like the hostage situation, why I can only help people if only a super villain is around… then look up Arachna Woman," Ghost Spider told him cryptically. "There, you'll find your answers."

With that, Ghost Spider swung away, leaving Peter with more questions than he had before about this secretive hero, her powers that seemed to be even more advanced than his own, and even more mysteries than Peter could think of.

As he too swung back home, he thought, _Who the hell is Arachna Woman?_

 **So, here's the chapter!**

 **Sorry if it doesn't have much action, i'm a little bit terrible at writing action sequences, but what do you think of the policewoman and her vendetta against masked superheroes? And Silkie's mini-breakdown?**

 **Anyway, next chapter is Silkie coming over to Peter's house. There's going to be some plot twists and some sharing of information, but I'm not saying anything more!**

 **As always, reviews are loved and appreciated, please send them, but remember, no negative reviews!**

 **Anyway, see you next chapter!**

 **Please read and review!**

 **GhostWriterGirl out!**


	7. Chapter 6

**Chapter 7**

Chapter 6

 **Arachna Woman**.

Peter watched as thousands upon thousands of websites about the once-superhero came up. Clicking on them, he read the information about the heroine and saw a few images of the past protector of Chicago, before reading up a particularly interesting article on this woman.

Apparently, Arachna Woman was the first ever spider-hero, who had protected people from not only super villains, but also put many ordinary criminals behind bars. It was even rumoured she was the mentor of Ghost Spider and the inspiration for her to become the hero that she was now.

 _More like a person who chooses to protect others when she feels as if nothing bad will happen to her, even when a situation with the police could go dangerous and many civilians could be hurt or killed and not even thinking of lifting a finger to help,_ Peter thought irritably as he continued to read the spectacular, but brief, heroics of the superhero, of all the amazing rescues, but he did notice that some articles reported that Arachna Woman wouldn't engage in some crimes, and even though the police handled all the crimes without fatality, there was one where Arachna Woman wouldn't engage in a hostage situation, and one of the hostages, a disarmed policeman named Alec Fosters, was killed when an armed criminal was startled and fired his gun and accidentally shot him in the chest, but other than that, she was a hero.

Until one night, she was fighting against one of her recurring foes who had taken an innocent person hostage to hold as ransom, and in the fight, Arachna Woman had accidentally killed that hostage, causing her to disappear, and the foe was killed as well by being savagely dismembered, the pictures not available because of how gruesome it was. After that, Ghost Spider and Arachna Girl had shown up, protecting Chicago when Arachna Woman no longer could. There was nothing more on the hero.

Groaning, Peter pushed away from the desk before standing up, stretching, and clearing his computer of the information. Looking back at it, he noticed the framed photo of him and Gwen.

Picking it up, he thought silently about what would happen if she and Silkie ever met before Gwen's death. He chuckled at that, before setting the photo down and deciding to crash for a little while before going on patrol as Spider-Man later tonight.

* * *

It was the next day.

After my mini-breakdown, I had decided to crash for the night, not bothering to have dinner despite my rumbling stomach. Mom had come and roused me a bit to ask why I had come in late, but I snapped at her to leave me alone. However, a few minutes after she left, Aaron, surprisingly, came in, and instead of annoying me with his early morning commentary, silently sat next to me and gave me a hug. Although it had been weird, it was nice, actually, and comforting. After that, he left, which was okay; him even giving me a comforting hug was a bit weird.

Eventually, I made my way downstairs, but quickly wolfed down a bowl of _Fruit Loops_ cereal and a glass of orange juice before racing up the stairs and heading to the bathroom, intending to get out of the house so that I could go to Peter's as quick as I could. Hurriedly cleaning my teeth, I raced back up to my attic room where I changed out of my pyjamas and into a long-sleeved white T-shirt with a purple and blue dream catcher image with a few rhinestones on it, faded dark blue jeans, a large brown faux leather belt, ankle-long, grey boots that were worn from use, and a blue denim jacket. Tying my hair into my classic low plait, a few strands purposefully hanging out, I sprinted back downstairs and into the bathroom and freshened myself up there, ran out of there and back to my room and grabbed the photos of me as Ghost Spider, slung my cherished camera over my shoulder and headed back downstairs and leaving through the back door.

The sky was still painted with the colours of dawn. Mom and Dad would have left for work by now during my rush to get ready, and Aaron would have gone back to sleep as well, not to mention that most of the people here in this suburban street in Queens would be sound asleep in their warm beds.

Which made my worries for the route I was about to take ease a little.

Heading to my fence, I quickly swung myself over it, relieved that it wasn't too high, before with a running start I leaped onto the wall of our neighbours' house, crawling up it onto the roof, where I leaped from that roof to the one of the house next to this one. This was how I traveled all five blocks to where Peter told me his house was, evading a few close calls before finally arriving at my destination-Peter's house.

Crawling down the back wall of the house next door, I casually leapt over the fence parting that house from the house next to it and seemingly materialised onto the sidewalk as I casually walked down it, striding up to Peter's house when I had caught sight of it, slightly running up the stairs that lead to the front door, and rung the doorbell. By now, the sky was becoming more or less bluer, and I was betting nearly everyone was waking up more or less now. I estimated that it must been now nearly six or seven in the morning.

After a few more minutes of waiting, I could hear the sounds of scuffling and a muffled voice behind the door and a woman in her late sixties or early seventies with dark brown hair opened the door, her brown eyes still sharp and lively.

"Who are you?" she asked simply, wariness in her tone. I couldn't blame her, since I, a stranger, was on her doorstep.

"I'm Silkie. Silkie Arach? Peter may have mentioned me. I'm the girl with the photos of Ghost Spider," I explained to the woman helpfully.

The woman's eyes widened slightly in realisation.

"Oh, _you're_ the girl that Peter was talking to on the phone yesterday and had said was coming over here today? Come on in, then."

Although it was a bit reluctant, I entered Peter's home.

It was nice, though slightly cluttered, and had well-loved feel to it. When the woman closed the door, I noticed that there was a black cloth covering where obviously glass had been.

"What happened to the door?"

"Peter. He and Ben argued and he left. He slammed the door so hard, that the glass shattered. He must have more strength than we realised," the woman responded as she led me to the kitchen.

"Oh." Judging by the way the fabric covered the entirety of where the plane of glass had been before it had shattered, it must have taken a lot of raw strength to break it-and door glass wasn't the easiest thing to break.

Believe me, it took a lot of my super strength to break glass like that to confront a villain or save someone, especially if the door was locked or jammed.

The woman ushered me to the table. I gratefully took a seat.

"Thanks, um…"

"May. May Parker," the woman introduced. "I'm Peter's aunt."

"Oh. Um, who's Ben?"

The woman, May, got a sad, haunted look in her eyes.

"Ben… was my husband and Peter's uncle."

"Oh. What happened?"

"What do you mean?"

"You referred to Ben in the past tense. And unless he's sleeping, I don't see him anywhere. What happened to him?" I explained, before innocently inquiring again.

"Oh. He, um… died actually. A few years ago," May admitted, knowing that I was asking an innocent question.

My hand flew up to my mouth, eyes wide, the other hand reaching out to touch the older woman's hand.

"I'm so sorry," I whispered. "How did it happen?"

May gave me a stern glare, despite the sadness in those eyes.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to pry. It's just that… I understand," I admitted. "I lost my aunt eight years ago."

Now it was May's turn to offer condolences to me.

"Oh dear, I'm so sorry," she whispered. I blinked back tears, not wanting to cry right now.

"It's okay, but it still hurts. And I wasn't the only person to lose my Aunt Janet. My cousin, Claire, was my aunt's daughter. She lost a mother eight years ago too." And I lost a mentor in Aunt Janet too and who inspired me to become Ghost Spider and protect Chicago as best as I could, even though I knew that my aunt was still alive, but I wasn't going to tell May any of that.

I had a secret identity to keep, after all, and I wasn't sure if May was able to keep it secret.

We sat in comfortable, heavy silence for a while, before May said abruptly, "Peter may be up by now. I could check, and if he isn't, I can always wake him up."

I gave a sly, wicked grin. "Same here."

Standing up, I moved to the stairs, not caring that I might give Peter a rude wake up call if he was indeed still asleep.

* * *

A banging on the bedroom door and an irritated shout of, "Peter, wake up and open the freaking door!", jolted Peter awake. Head shooting up, his eyes widened when he realised that the voice-and shout-belonged to Silkie; and that he was still in his suit.

 _She's here already?_ Peter thought, before shouting, "One sec!", and practically tumbled out of bed in a frantic rush to get out of his suit and get some clothes on. The doorknob jiggled and the wood groaned as Silkie slammed on the closed door, voice rising an octave as she shouted, "Peter Parker, you need a damn good reason as to why this door is locked when I come in!"

"One sec!" Peter repeated as he _finally_ managed to get out of his suit. Using a web-shooter, he shot a web-line at the handle of the closet door and pulled it open, hurriedly throwing his suit in and shut it and locked it before he hastily pulled a long-sleeved shirt over his head, making his brown hair stand up, the sleeves effectively covering his web-shooters, and quickly put on a pair of jeans and shoes. The pounding continued, as well as a shout of, "Peter, open up the damn door!"

After a few more seconds and a threat from Silkie that she will force the door open in a minute unless he opened it right now, Peter grabbed the controller to his computerised lock and unlocked the door, which a very irritated Silkie opened and entered into his room.

"You better have a damn good reason for locking the door," Silkie growled, blue eyes gleaming with irritated fire.

"I was sleeping and forgot to unlock it?" Peter lied, though it came out as more of a question. The real reason was that he didn't want his Aunt May to walk in and notice his Spider-Man suit, which he looked over at the closet to check the door was firmly closed and locked.

"Uh huh, right," Silkie replied dryly, though her earlier irritation had faded away. Leaning back on his desk, she handed him a tan binder. "Catch."

Peter did, making sure his quicker than average reflexes were toned down from Silkie being in the same room as him.

Sitting back on his unmade bed, Peter opened the fat, full binder to see photos of the masked person who he wasn't sure was a hero or someone who helps when she feels like it.

And the photos were good. _Really_ good.

"Well?" Silkie asked, her tone taking on nervous.

"They're good. Really good. Maybe even better than mine," Peter admitted.

Silkie cracked a small grin.

"Maybe I'll put in when I sell my photos to J. Jonah Jameson that my photos of Ghost Spider are better than Peter Parker's photos of Spider-Man."

"Don't rub it in."

"I'm not; I'm just teasing."

Peter let a small smile cross his face. He had missed this sort of banter from Gwen, even though Silkie wasn't Gwen.

Silkie pushed herself off the desk, strolling around his room.

"Is this your room?"

"Yes."

"A bit of a mess, isn't it?"

"Well, I didn't have time to clean it up last night," Peter responded.

Silkie laughed.

"Touché."

She then stopped in front of his closet.

Peter felt himself panic slightly, as his suit was in there, and he didn't have very much time to properly hide it by burying it under his other clothes. He watched as Silkie curiously tried to open the door, before giving up.

"Wow, your closet door's locked up tighter than your bedroom's! What have you got hiding in there, Parker?"

Peter shrugged.

"I like my privacy," Peter lied smoothly. The actual reason the closet door was locked was because of his suit.

Silkie shrugged as well and moved away from the door before plopping onto the bed next to Peter, an expression of clear disbelief on her face.

"Yeah right," she muttered under her breath before saying," Well, I know what you want to do when you get out of the hellhole that is college. What was New York like when you were younger?"

Peter thought about it.

A lot had changed since his parents had left and they had died. He had become Spider-Man, found out the real reason that his parents were left and that his father was accused of making biological weapons for foreign countries for a lot of money, and Gwen had died. He had begun to see New York in a new perspective, as a city that had to be protected, or it would fall into anarchy.

"It was… when I was younger, the city was a lot simpler, the _world_ was a lot simpler. Then everything changed and I began to see the city as a city that had to be protected. Because, if that Spider-Man wasn't around to save the day, who will?"

It was as close to the truth that Peter could say without admitting his secret identity.

Silkie nodded as if she understood.

"Yeah, that was the same with me and Chicago," she answered.

"What was Chicago like?" Peter asked.

Silkie thought about it for a while before answering.

"Loud. Very loud. And overlaid with complex layers. And it was riddled with crime. I had to walk home with my brother and my Aunt Janet home when me and Claire were younger before I could learn to defend myself to make sure we weren't mugged. Then Arachna Woman, Ghost Spider and Arachna Girl came. The rate in crime dropped and many people were thankful for that, me in particular. But even with all it's flaws, Chicago is a beautiful city with a wonderful culture once you begin to see it as the gem it is."

The answer sounded true, but there was a ring of sadness to it when she came to her aunt.

"What happened?" Peter asked, hoping he didn't sound prying.

Silkie seemed to be considering his question before replying.

"It was a case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. My aunt was walking home when she was caught in the crossfire of Arachna Woman and one of her foe's fights. My Aunt Janet noticed a hostage was there, but before she could help, the fight came to where she was at the hostage's side. She fled for cover, but during that time, the hostage was accidentally killed. The next day, all they found was the dead hostage, the foe ripped apart, and my aunt's body pierced with a clean, but bloody, hole through the heart."

Silkie paused to take a shuddering breath while Peter waited in shocked silence.

"To say I was depressed that day is putting it lightly. I watched, as they lowered a lively, caring, compassionate, warm person who never failed to do the right thing into a cold grave. Not only did my cousin lose a mother or my uncle lose a wife, I also lost not only my beloved aunt, but my mentor that night."

Silkie took in another breath, the breath hitching slightly, while a tear trailed down her cheek. She sniffled and wiped the tear away.

"Please don't tell anyone I was being a big sap, especially Aaron. He would never stop teasing me about it."

"I won't," Peter promised. "But your aunt, your situation… it sounds very similar to my Uncle Ben."

"Your aunt told me a bit about him while we waited for you to wake up. What was he like?"

"Like your Aunt Janet. He was a second father to me, and he made me who I am today. He shouldn't have died, but maybe if he didn't, I probably wouldn't be the person here right now."

"How did he die?"

"He tried to stop an armed thief. They went for the gun, but the thief fired it off; right into my uncle's chest."

One of Silkie's hands flew up to her mouth.

"Peter, I'm so sorry," she breathed. With the other hand, she gripped Peter's hand.

"Sometimes, I ask myself about whether if I was there, if I was able to stop my aunt from going in, she would still be here," Silkie whispered. "But I'm sure she'll tell me that there wasn't anything I could have done to stop her that night."

"My Uncle Ben would've told me the same thing if I tried to stop him," Peter responded.

 _And I probably wouldn't be Spider-Man,_ Peter thought to himself.

Silkie nodded in understanding.

A comfortable silence came, one which Peter and Silkie both didn't want to break. A few minutes later, however, Silkie broke it by saying, "So, what did your parents do?"

Peter looked at her, contemplating how he should answer, before going with the truth.

"They were scientists. My dad worked at OsCorp before he and my mom had to leave."

Silkie didn't ask, but Peter continued.

"I was four when they left. Dropped me off on my Uncle Ben and Aunt May's doorstep. A few days after, the plane they were flying on crashed. There were no survivors."

A hitched breath came, and Peter turned to look at her. Her eyes were wide, but she didn't pry.

"What do _your_ parents do?" Peter asked in turn.

Silkie loosed a breath before answering.

"My mom's a photographer, but she also works part-time as a secretary, though she doesn't say where, and my dad's a businessman. He's hardly home, but when he is home, he dotes on me and Aaron, wanting to keep our relationship from getting strained. I love my parents equally, but I have a closer relationship with my mom. She inspired me to become a photographer, and-why do you have that man's photo?"

Peter looked in her direction, where he saw her frowning at a picture of a younger him and his parents.

"That's me and my parents. That man is my father. Why?"

Silkie took in a sharp breath, blue eyes wide.

"Are you okay?" Peter asked, worried, noting that Silkie looked like she had seen a ghost.

"Peter… I think I may have seen your father's photo in my aunt's study."

Peter's eyes widened at the revelation, genuinely shocked.

"Are… are you sure?" he whispered.

"As sure as me standing in front of you right now," she whispered as well, eyes widened to almost the size of dinner plates, hand trembling slightly. Seeing the photo must have stirred something in her.

Peter looked at her, his own eyes wide. He knew he could never clear his parents' name without sufficient evidence proving that Norman Osborn had falsified evidence against them, but he wanted to know if maybe, just maybe, that Silkie's aunt may have been involved in the spider project.

Looking straight at Silkie, he said to her, voice hoarse, "Tell me."

He hadn't needed to elaborate, for Silkie got what he meant in those two words. She let out another breath and said slowly, her voice solemn, "Peter, what I'm about to tell you is all that I remember from when I was four. Nothing more, nothing less. And please know that your father did not cheat on your mom with my aunt. You understand, right?"

Peter only gave a nod.

Standing up from the bed, Silkie went over to lean on the desk again, keeping her body angled away from the photo. She only glanced away once before telling Peter her tale.

"Like I said, I was only four at the time; too young to understand what was happening around me. My aunt was an geneticist and an etymologist who specifically studied spiders and other arachnids. Kinda like an arachnologist, you could say. Even though I could have broken something or mess something up that could have been really important, she let me into her study, even when she wasn't there. It was kind of like a second home to me.

"One day, I walked in and discovered a new photo sitting on my aunt's desk. That photo was a photo of your dad and my aunt standing together in a strange laboratory. I asked my aunt when she returned and she said she was taking business trips to a company called OsCorp-which I now know is the same company your father worked at as well-in New York to work on a type of modified spider project, with your father sometimes coming down to Chicago as well for a few times. I hardly saw him when he came down.

"Then, one day, those few visits stopped."

Silkie looked at Peter, her face unreadable.

"Peter, what I just told you is all true. I don't know anything else, and I don't have anything else I'm hiding back from you. It's. All. True."

"I know," Peter whispered, hands behind his head. "And I know it's not much, but thank you for the information, though. It helps, especially after what my aunt told me of how my parents left me with my aunt and uncle to go on the run."

"Go on the run?"

"The government accused my dad that he was making bio-weapons for foreign countries. He and my mom had to run away and hide. My aunt told me just that six months ago, and then I found a video from my father that says otherwise. So, I believe you that what you told me is all you know."

Silkie gave him another smile before sitting back on the bed and lying down, Peter also lying down, as the two laid down in silence, Peter contemplating the information that Silkie just gave him. He knew that it wasn't much… but it was enough for him to get a clearer picture of who his parents were, especially his father, before they left.

And hearing that Silkie's aunt was involved in the spider project as well… it was making him believe that maybe Arachna Woman, Ghost Spider and Arachna Girl may have received their powers from the spiders that Silkie's aunt could have been working on.

Little did Peter know at the time how wrong his guess was.

* * *

 _I should tell him._

I frowned.

 _Where did_ that _thought come from?_

But I knew where it had come from.

It had come from a part of me that wanted to tell Peter the truth-the truth about my family, the truth about my family curse.

And the truth that I was Ghost Spider.

I looked back at him.

His eyes were half-closed, brown hair almost flopping on top of his eyes, arms behind his head. He looked so peaceful, so calm…

I really did want to tell him the truth, but I also didn't want him to think I was some freak.

As I lay there, mind tossing up between telling him and not telling him, when he turned to me and asked, "Is there something you want to tell me, Silkie?"

 _Shoot,_ I thought, before turning to him and asking back, "What gave you that idea?"

"The look that you had. I know you don't think you do it, but you're kind of like an open book."

I sat up, internally wincing at the words. I knew he didn't mean anything by it. By then, I didn't want to tell him the whole truth, so I decided to go with half-truth instead.

"Do you know your Greek myths well, Peter?" I asked him.

He furrowed his brow slightly, thinking.

"A couple," Peter admitted,"though I'm more of the science type. I don't really know much folklore and myth."

"I hope you know this one," I muttered under my breath, before saying,"Well, there is one myth I know-the tale of Athena, goddess of wisdom, and Arachne, a mortal weaver with some major ego issues.

"Arachne was a human weaver who was so proud, she challenged Athena to a weaving contest. When Arachne won, she boasted about it so much, that Athena cursed her to become a spider and to weave forever, and all her spider descendants after her, blah blah blah.

"But, there was one part of the tale that most people don't know."

I took a deep breath before continuing.

"Athena allowed Arachne to be human for two weeks every month. And during those precious couple of weeks, she met and fell in love with an ordinary human. Together, they had a daughter named Lydia, after Arachne's birth country. However, as soon as Lydia was born, she soon demonstrated that she had inherited some of Arachne's spider abilities. But, after she had her own children, it was discovered she had also inherited the curse, after she accidentally stabbed an innocent person, transforming into a huge spider shortly after. And to this day, Arachne's descendants are vulnerable to the curse, if they ever endangered or accidentally killed an innocent person-which is what happened to Arachna Woman. She was tricked into killing that hostage that same night my Aunt Janet died. And I know because Ghost Spider-another descendant of Arachne-told me because I am one of her only friends in her civilian life."

Actually, I knew because I _was_ Ghost Spider, but I wasn't going to tell Peter that.

I turned to face him fully, inklings of hope flooding through me. If Aunt Janet really _did_ work with Peter's dad, then maybe, _maybe_ they had found a cure for the curse, all those years, ago.

"Peter, if your dad and my aunt had worked on a cure for for this curse, then I can use it to help break Ghost Spider's curse. Please, Peter. Tell me."

"Why?"

"My Aunt Janet was a friend of Arachna Woman as well. Both these heroes were trying to find a cure for this curse. Please Peter. Tell me," I pleaded, my blue eyes wide. "I need to give it to Ghost Spider, I need to give my friend the cure _if_ your father and my aunt did indeed manage to make it, so that she can help save people without worrying about turning into a monstrous spider."

I actually wanted to give it to myself, because of me being Ghost Spider, but I wasn't going to tell him that. Not until I knew I could trust him for certain, anyway.

Peter looked at me, a look of total confusion and other, unreadable expressions on his face.

"Silkie, my father never said anything about a cure for this… curse, on Ghost Spider and Arachna Woman. Not even in the video that I had found."

My hope dwindled away, until Peter added, "But, I will look into it, I promise."

I looked at him, my eyes wide and the turmoil only held back my secrets, secrets that I couldn't bear to tell him yet.

"Thank you," I whispered hoarsely-and meant it.

* * *

Hours flew past, hours in which Peter and Silkie spent talking and listening to music and generally just having an awesome time. During this time, Peter felt even more comfortable and happy around her. Although he still had thoughts about Gwen, they were just stored away whenever he was with Silkie. He couldn't help but admire what a woman Silkie was-prickliness and all. He hoped that she would find a man that would treat her right, and love her for who she was, even with her prickliness.

When Peter looked at the time, his jaw almost dropped to the floor.

"What is it?" Silkie inquired.

"It's getting late; you should be going home soon. Do you want me to walk you home?" Peter offered.

Silkie's eyes widened, and her mouth set into a firm, stubborn line.

"Are you crazy?! I can walk home fine by myself! I'm not some helpless damsel; I _do_ know how to take care of myself!" Silkie objected, eyes gleaming defiant blue fire.

"I know, and I'm not saying you're helpless-"

"Oh, you think?" Silkie cut in dryly, arms folded, sarcasm all over her face.

"I'm not," Peter continued. "But I would feel much more better that I know you've arrived home safe."

"It's four in the afternoon!" Silkie stated, arm flung to the buttery, afternoon sunlight flooding through Peter's window into his room.

"I know," Peter repeated. "And I know you won't stop objecting against it, but I won't back down. I won't."

Silkie scowled. "You're not going to give this up, are you?"

Peter nodded in confirmation that he wasn't going to give up on insisting that he would walk Silkie home.

The acclaimed girl flung her arms up in the air, a look of defeat on her face.

"Fine. You win, Parker. Walk-" Silkie seemed to almost choke on the word-"walk me home."

* * *

Minutes later, and Peter hadn't spoken a word to Silkie on him walking her home. The girl walked silently beside him, looking deep in thought.

Wanting to break the silence, Peter cleared his throat, startling Silkie. Her head shot up from where it was once bowed, eyes wide.

Peter chuckled lightly. "I didn't know you were easy to startle, Silkie."

Silkie scowled, eyes narrowing.

"You caught me off guard, that's all."

"Sure," Peter murmured under his breath, before saying, in a louder voice, "Silkie, would you… would you like to hang out with me tomorrow at Central Park? As friends?"

Silkie considered it for a second, before saying in a heartbeat, "Yes. What time do you want to meet?"

Peter smiled. "Around ten to twelve?"

"Wow, that's pretty late. What do you do for a morning, Parker?"

 _I swing around the city and stop crime as Spider-Man,_ Peter answered in his mind, but said out loud, "Sleep in and put in some last minute homework for college." Both were true as well.

Silkie nodded slightly, seeming to buy it. For now, at least.

"Well then, I'll meet you there at… Central Park, right?"

"Right."

The two fell into a comfortable talk about where to meet at Central Park when Silkie said abruptly," Well, here's my humble abode."

Peter looked up at the modest, two-storey, white-and-blue painted house, looking unassuming. "This is your house?"

"Yeah, this is my house. Why do you ask?"

"I just thought you would live somewhere… flashier."

Silkie gave him a wry smile as she strode up to the front porch steps, Peter trailing behind her.

"Well, appearances can be deceiving."

 _They certainly can be,_ Peter thought absently, as he said," Well, there isn't any more need of my being here. See you tomorrow, Silkie."

As he turned on his heel, Silkie called out, "I'm sorry, you know."

Peter stopped in his tracks, turning around to see Silkie still by the half-open door, sorrow and other emotions displayed on her face and in her eyes.

"About Gwen," she clarified. "I may not know what it is like to lose someone you love so deeply, so truely, that suddenly, but I do understand, sort of, from losing my aunt. And I'm sorry for that."

The words were sincere, which was what shocked Peter even more.

The only sincere condolences he received about Gwen's death were from his Aunt May and Gwen's family; the rest were just washed-out versions. But to hear Silkie say that, a girl who didn't know Gwen, and who admitted herself that she didn't know what it was like to lose someone like that like Peter did, but she understood, kind of, from losing her beloved aunt, resonated with Peter, and it touched him.

To his very core.

"Thanks," he mumbled, thinking that he had received a good friend in Silkie, before leaving, looking back once to see Silkie go inside her home and close the door. A slight smile made it's way on Peter's lips as he thought about spending the day with a woman like Silkie.

 _Get a grip, Peter. Tomorrow won't mean anything other than spending the day to get to know a friend, that's all,_ Peter firmly told himself as he walked back home.

But he couldn't help himself to look forward to it.

* * *

"Get a grip, Silkie," I muttered to myself as I watched Peter walk away from the peephole in the door. "Tomorrow won't mean anything other than spending the day to get to know a friend, that's all."

But still, as I watched Peter walk away and remember how he had offered to walk me home, a warm feeling spread through me, and I couldn't help myself look forward to tomorrow.

 **And so the sparks begin to fly!**

 **I do know when they'll reveal their secrets and their(by then)full-fledged feelings for each other, but not until later in the story! And, anyone who guesses why I chose _Fruit Loops_ will receive a virtual cookie. Although, I'll give you a hint-it's a well-known insult for a certain villain from a certain cartoon...**

 **And so, for all those who would imagine this as a movie, here's my dream cast for my characters(original ones, of course)for the "movie":**

 **Silkie Arach/Ghost Spider-Alexandra Daddario**

 **Aaron Arach-Zac Efron**

 **Sabrina Arach(Silkie's and Aaron's mom)-Nicole Kidman**

 **Janet Monroe/Arachna Woman-Uma Thurman**

 **Claire Monroe/Arachna Girl- Shailene Woodley**

 **Zoe Fosters(you'll see her in the next chapter)-Lily Collins**

 **Bridget Marlow(Silkie's best friend from Chicago)-Emma Watson**

 **Peggy Fosters(the policewoman from chapter six)-Bryce Dallas Howard**

 **Lucas Arach( Silkie's and Aaron's dad)- Pierce Bronson**

 **Hex-Charlize Theron**

 **And that's my dream cast!**

 **So, I decided Alexandra Daddario for Silkie because she played Annabeth Chase in the Percy Jackson movies pretty well as a badass female character, and if she could do that for Annabeth, then she can do it for Silkie.**

 **I hope you enjoy, and for those readers who want Janet's curse broken, it will be later on! And so, please darling people, review, they are loved and appreciated, just not hurtful.**

 **Anyways, enjoy the next chapter!**

 **GhostWriterGirl out!**


	8. Chapter 7

**Chapter 8**

Chapter 7

"Where is he?" I muttered to myself, foot tapping impatiently. I checked my watch again for what felt like the billionth time, just to make sure it wasn't past twelve.

I had arrived at nine o'clock on the dot after stopping a minor robbery(and without enacting the curse)and had waited for Peter for a full hour.

When it had reached ten o'clock, I told myself that he had said ten to twelve and that he was just running a little late.

But now, two hours later and the minute hand on my watch reaching ever closer to twelve o'clock, I was beginning to get more than a little impatient.

And I also knew "sleeping in and doing last minute work for college" wasn't the reason for why he was late.

 _Peter Parker, where the hell are you?_ I thought to myself, getting a bit worried as well.

* * *

"Man, I'm late, I'm late, I'm _late_!" Peter muttered to himself as he hurriedly swung to Central Park and to the bench he and Silkie had agreed to meet at. Crap, he was so _late_! But he wasn't surprised-it wasn't _his_ fault that the Rhino had started robbing those stores and his spider-sense had went off.

But, it had cost him time, and he wouldn't be surprised that Silkie had left by the time he got there.

Finally, after what seemed like hours, the fringes of Central Park appeared.

 _Maybe I won't be late?_ Peter thought hopefully-only to have his spider-sense go off.

 _Maybe I will,_ Peter added bitterly as he turned around and saw-surprise, surprise-the Rhino rampaging down in the streets of New York, enraged.

"He seems to be ready for round two," Peter mused to himself, before going in.

"Here we go again," he muttered, while also hoping that Silkie was still there.

* * *

Fifteen minutes till twelve and Peter _still_ wasn't here.

My foot tapped even more impatiently, and I hummed an annoying tune to myself. I always hummed an annoying tune when I was getting _really_ impatient, before deciding to pass the time by taking a few photos and people-watch. I actually got a few decent snaps and was observing a mom wrestling her three-year-old son into his stroller when someone tripped over my crossed legs stretched leisurely in front of me-and also working as a walking hazard.

"AHHH!" The person screamed, but before the person's face could have a meeting with the ground, I used a portion of my quicker-than-average reflexes to catch the person.

"Whoa, quick reflexes," the person complimented.

"Thanks," I said back. "Are you all right?"

"Yeah, I'm fine; just got to watch where I'm going," the person answered, dusting off some stray grass on their jeans. By then I had gotten a good look at the person's face and instantly recognised them.

"Hey! You're Zoe Fosters, from my photography class," I realised.

The person, Zoe, looked at me, her brown-green eyes widening in recognition.

"And you're the new girl, Scarlet Arach!"

I cringed slightly at my full name. It wasn't a bad name, but I preferred my nickname.

"I actually prefer Silkie," I told her.

Zoe nodded, before her face crumpled.

"Damnit! My photo portfolio of the flora and fauna of Central Park fell out of my hands and the photos are scattered everywhere and there's no time to pick them all up and-and-"

"Whoa, whoa, calm down before you have a panic attack! Honestly, you're as bad as my best friend when she loses her violin music sheets!" I compared. "Take a chill pill. Here, I'll help."

To further demonstrate what I wanted to do, I stooped down and helped Zoe pick up her photos. It wasn't what I imagined to do to spend my time waiting for Peter, but at least I was _doing_ something.

"Thanks for the help," Zoe thanked when we had stuffed the last few photos in her bulging file.

I shrugged.

"I was waiting for someone and needed something to do anyway."

"Let me guess, the person you're waiting for is Peter Parker, right?"

"Yes, why do you ask?"

"No reason. Except that you must need some extremely high patience levels if you're going to hang out with Peter. For two years and six months, he's become known among the student body and staff, both in high school and college, for being late and having a penchant for leaving abruptly for no apparent reason," she explained. She frowned.

"It's strange, really. He's in my photography class too, and he's so nice. I can't imagine him being late for class or leaving abruptly… but he does," Zoe mused.

"Same here," I murmured to myself. I had also noticed too but I didn't want to pry into it. Peter's business was his business-though I was really, really tempted to ask him now.

"Well, thanks for the help, for picking up my photos. It would have taken me _forever_ to pick them up on my own," Zoe thanked again, her pretty face slightly blushing from the embarrassment of having to pick up her exposed photos.

I shrugged again.

"It was no problem and like I said, I needed something to do. The other options were taking my own photos and people-watching."

"How did those two work out for you?"

"I took some pretty decent snaps, but people-watching was getting a little boring; the most entertaining thing was watching a mom fighting her toddler into the stroller."

"So, bored out of your mind?"

"You bet."

Zoe laughed and I felt myself relaxing and smiling a little. Zoe reminded me of Bridget-and I didn't know whether to be glad or upset that she did.

I decided to choose glad.

"Hey Zoe, before you go, would you like to-"

I was about to say "hang out with me and Peter at lunch tomorrow" when a shout of "Sorry I'm late!," interrupted me before I could say anything else.

I turned, narrowing my eyes at Peter, who looked like he had been through a mini-cyclone.

"Peter, where have you been!?" I yelled at him.

Peter cringed.

I felt a bit bad about yelling at him, but I wanted answers. Now.

"I was, uh, getting something for my Aunt May?" he answered, though it came out as more of a question.

I folded my arms, eyes narrowed.

"Uh huh, right… and where is that something that you were getting for your Aunt May?" I grilled further, feeling a bit terrible about interrogating him.

"Uh…"

"Are you two dating?"

Me and Peter turned to Zoe, eyes wide in shock.

" _WHAT_!?" we both exclaimed at once.

Zoe nodded, as if coming to a conclusion.

"It's actually _really_ obvious. Why haven't I figured it out sooner?"

"F-figure what out?" I asked nervously. Oh God, did Zoe figure out I was Ghost Spider? I looked at Peter, who seemed to be as nervous as me.

 _That's weird_ , I thought. Peter had no reason to be nervous about Zoe figuring something out about him… right?

Zoe smiled at us, as if she was ready to divulge in us what she had figured out.

"The banter, the nervousness between you two, today… you two are going on a date, aren't you?"

I was about to yell out, "It's a lie, I'm not Ghost Spider!", when I registered her words and laughed.

"Ha ha, ha ha! Zoe, you've got it wrong-we're _not_ dating. We're just hanging out today. As _friends_ ," I clarified, emphasising on the word "friends". Zoe looked at us with an embarrassed look.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I must have interpreted that wrong. I'm usually good at reading people; it's a family trait."

 _Hopefully not_ too _good,_ I thought, knowing my secret would probably be in jeopardy if I hung out with Zoe if she was as good at reading people as she claimed.

Zoe appeared to want to say something else when a beep and the wail of a police siren came.

"Oh, that's my mom. See you guys tomorrow!" Zoe farewelled, but before she left, I grabbed Zoe's arm, clutching it in a vice-like grip.

"Whoa, Silkie, do you lift weights or something? That's a pretty mean grip you have," Zoe commented.

"Zoe, would you like to sit with me and Peter at lunch tomorrow?" I asked. Peter blinked a few times behind me and so did Zoe.

"Like… like sitting with you? As a friend?" she asked slowly.

"Yeah," I answered her.

Zoe beamed.

"Sure. I love too," she responded, before an impatient beep came.

"My mom's getting impatient. See you tomorrow!" Zoe called out as she walked through Central Park to her mom's car. A few seconds later, the police siren started up before disappearing.

I turned to Peter and saw his expression. He was excited for today, but was nervous I would snap at him again. I decided to let it slide, for now.

"So…" I started, pasting a smile on my face that soon became genuine when Peter's own smile grew bigger when he knew I wasn't going to snap at him again, "… where do we begin?"

* * *

Other than Peter being late and having Silkie snap at him and that girl in his photography class-Zoe Fosters, if he remembered correctly-misinterpreting that this was a date-which it wasn't-today had been a pretty good day.

After Silkie had forgiven Peter for being late, they had gone for hotdogs for breakfast(as they had both skipped breakfast to be here on time), which they had devoured ravenously, and washing it down with a few cones of ice cream. Peter had been amazed that Silkie had two hotdogs and three ice creams and was quickly devouring a fourth as if she hadn't eaten in days, but the food did nothing to her, admittedly, gorgeous figure. When he asked her about it, she just shrugged and said, "My family, especially the male members of it, have huge appetites." They had used this to take a few selfies of Silkie devouring her ice creams(which she always didn't approve of)but they mostly took selfies together without the ice creams.

In the end, she was now slowly licking her fifth, and final, ice cream-a raspberry and chocolate ice cream with lavishes of thick fudge sauce poured over the top and a few Hundred's and Thousand's sprinkled on as well-while Peter just silently ate his simple vanilla ice cream. The two had just left the Central Park zoo(Silkie had loved the the big cats section; she had been beaming with joy when the lion cubs wanted to play with her), a lion cub plush toy and a shirt that said "I'm Part Of The Pride" with the face of a lion behind it in a bag slung over her shoulder, and now, they were just talking, the subject being on how in love she had been with the lions.

"I have always loved lions," she explained. "They're majestic creatures, and just to know that they can act so much like our domestic cats and they're not all the fierce man-hunters we humans believe they are is really humbling. I especially love the white lions."

Peter smiled at this, and listened to Silkie telling him about her wanting to get a summer job working at the zoo, especially in the lion exhibit.

"Cheryl says I have a special connection with the female cub, Sheba, and I may be thinking of volunteering to be her personal keeper for the summer," Silkie told him as they walked on a familiar pier, almost finished with their ice creams. As soon as they were done, they chucked them in a nearby bin and just continued walking, chatting idly as well, before Peter asked, "So, Silkie, do you have any friends in Chicago?"

Silkie turned to him, her expression incredulous, before answering.

"I do have friends in Chicago-my younger cousin Claire, and Bridget Marlow, the latter being my best friend since we were kids. We're pretty close, so much that we consider ourselves like sisters. What about you? Do you have any friends here?"

"No," Peter answered bluntly, remembering his first, only and last friend, Harry Osborn, and how he was now in a mental institution because he injected himself with the venom of the enhanced spiders when Peter had refused to give him his blood to cure his disease.

Yep, even though Peter seemed like a horrible friend for not giving his blood to cure Harry's disease, seeing what the venom had done to Harry, he could only imagine what his _blood_ could have done to him. "I _had_ a friend, but I don't anymore."

"What happened?" Silkie innocently persisted. "What caused you two to fall out? Wha-"

"Look Silkie, I don't want to talk about it," Peter firmly interrupted. Sighing, he asked, "What's he like?"

"Pardon?"

"Your brother. What's he like?" Peter clarified as he swung himself over the rail and landed on the pebbly beach of the river next to the pier.

"Oh, Aaron? Well, how can I say it; honestly, he's annoying, teasing, slacker and a general a-hole, but, he can be caring when he wants to be, and would do anything to protect the ones he loves, including his girlfriend in Chicago, Carlie Jackson," she responded, following him shortly afterwards.

"He must be a tough guy to live with," Peter stated, picking up a couple of stones and weighing them in his hands.

"That he is," Silkie responded back.

"What's Aaron's girlfriend like?" Peter questioned.

"Carlie? Well, to be honest, she's like the opposite of Aaron. She's studious, kind and caring, but she can be a force to be reckoned with when you threaten her family or Aaron, and that both she and Aaron love each other deeply. Aaron's even talking about proposing to her once he gets a job, moves out of our parents' house, and gets a place to stay, though that's unlikely to happen for a long, long while."

"And do you have someone like that? Back in Chicago?" Peter then asked her.

"Who me? No, I don't," she answered.

"Why?"

"I don't want someone involved with me getting hurt, but it's mostly because that maybe I just… haven't found the right guy yet," she told him, the wind blowing the strands of her long black hair back, the sun's light casting a faint silver sheen on the raven strands. She didn't put her hair in her trademark low plait today, letting the waist-long hair fly behind her, and Peter had to admit, her having her long hair out made her look very, very pretty.

"And, do you know what the right guy for you would be like?" he persisted.

"I don't know actually, but I will when I find him," she answered, her blue eyes, narrowed against the glare of the sun, looked out at the water.

By that time, she seemed to notice their surroundings-and how close they stood together.

"Peter, why are we by a river… and why are we standing this close to each other?" she asked, breath coming out a little short at the last part, head turning to face him, blue eyes wide in questioning.

"I actually don't know," Peter whispered, turning to face her as well.

Silkie shifted her body so that she was fully facing Peter and the two looked at each other, faces close together, bodies only an inch apart. Slightly, both Peter and Silkie just stared at each other, before Silkie broke the moment and asked,"Peter, seriously, why are we by a freaking river?"

Moving away from Silkie, he knelt down, preparing his first stone.

"How good are you at skipping stones?"

Silkie scoffed.

"Oh, I am very good," she boasted, picking up her own stones.

"Let's see," he muttered, before skipping his stone, and lending some of his super strength to skip it further when he skipped it.

It went just as far as it did when he and Harry came here six months ago, maybe even farther.

"How did you do that?" Silkie asked, amazed.

"Oh. Well, it's all in the wrist," Peter cryptically told her. He crouched down.

"Can you throw farther than me?"

"Is that a challenge, Parker?"

"If you want it to be."

Silkie laughed-a wonderful sound.

"Then I accept your challenge, Parker," she told him. She readied her first stone. Leaning down, she observed the water, as if she was feeling the wind. Then, almost as fast as a gun shot, Silkie flicked the stone into the water.

Like a bullet, it skipped over the surface, going farther than Peter's own stone. When it finally made it's descent, it was a good five feet away from where Peter's own stone had sunk-and that was just an estimate.

"How did _you_ do that?" Peter asked Silkie, wanting to know her secret.

She shrugged, pulling a few strands of hair out of her face.

"Practice," she simply told him, the tone almost cryptic.

"Right…" Peter drew out, suspicion in his tone. Looking back at her, at the glow on her face, the happiness on it… it was wonderful.

"Let's go home," she breathed, blue eyes wide. She walked over to the railing and leaped up to it, swinging herself quickly over it in one fluid movement. Peter shortly followed her, and the two walked in silence back to Silkie's home.

* * *

The silence was tense, but neither Peter nor Silkie dared break the silence. And in that silence, Peter cast discreet, but observing looks at Silkie-at how she always wore long-sleeved shirts and jeans, rain or shine, at the non-existent, but slightly there, scars and fading bruises, how she refused to have the insides of her wrists shown in public, how she had deleted those photos form her camera and was reluctant to show him their print versions, and how fast that she had thrown that stone, and how far it had skipped over the water. They were feeble pieces of evidence, and unless he had more clues to go onto, his suspicions and the evidence for supporting his theory that he had thought up that Silkie was Ghost Spider, which he had found during those brief observations, would stay hidden to himself, just like he had to keep his secret identity of being Spider-Man from everyone, including Silkie, his Aunt May and, for a brief time, Gwen.

Peter's heart gave a brief pang of heartbreak at the thought of Gwen. He lowered his head as memories of her, alive and laughing, clashed with the vivid memories where his heart had broken into a million pieces when she died. Phantom tears came to his eyes, but he blinked them away.

"What's wrong?"

Peter looked over at Silkie. Her face was a picture of concern, blue eyes wide. Close up, Peter could see faint hazel and grey flecks in her otherwise crystal blue eyes, so faint that you had to look closely at her eyes to really notice them.

Silkie narrowed her eyes, and those flecks were lost in the depthless blue of her eyes. "What?" she asked, a bite in her words.

"Nothing," he responded. "I was… just thinking about Gwen, and it brought up some memories. Some happy. Some not."

Silkie nodded in solemn understanding.

"I understand. Sometimes, something will spark off some of my best memories of my Aunt Janet, and it sometimes clashes with the sad memories that I have of her, mostly the ones I have after her death," she whispered, putting a comforting hand on Peter's shoulder. It wasn't much, but it was comforting all the same.

Peter gave her a small smile.

"Thanks Silkie."

"Don't mention it. But if you do, I'll pound you."

Peter laughed. There was the prickly, tough Silkie he knew who would end someone if that person told anyone else any moments of vulnerability they had witnessed her having. He was used to it now, and found it kind of endearing. "Sure, Silk."

Silkie smiled wryly at him. She then looked forward and declared, "We're here. Thank you, Peter, for today. I had lots of fun."

Peter looked up and saw Silkie's humble home up ahead. He turned to her.

"I had a fun day as well," he admitted.

"Except for waiting for you," Silkie added, a playful bite in her words.

"Yeah, uh, sorry about that," Peter apologised, running a hand through his hair.

Silkie smiled softly.

"But, you made up for it with today and walking me home," she continued, walking up to her front door. Grabbing a house key from her jean pocket, she unlocked it.

She was halfway in when she turned slightly around and said, "Oh, and by the way, try not to be all awkward and such when Zoe sits with us tomorrow. And please, try to stop gawking at me."

Peter's eyes widened.

"When have I ever gawked at you?" he accused innocently.

"Right now, but I'll let it slid. For now," she told him, before hurriedly shutting the door.

Peter's brow furrowed deeper.

 _That was odd,_ he thought, and filed it away with his other suspicions about Silkie and Ghost Spider being one and the same as he walked away, before his spider sense went off then and he had to go deal with whatever had set it off as Spider-Man.

* * *

Peter may have thought I hadn't noticed him looking at me, but I did. The training Aunt Janet had given me about when an enemy was observing me, trying to find my weakness, had kicked in, and I had flicked my eyes only once to look in Peter's direction to notice him looking at me observingly, trying to be discreet and failing. It had made me feel uneasy and I couldn't help but flick proper, discreet looks at him and noting the suspicious look on his face, couldn't help but feel suspicious about _him_.

But it was only when I had slipped inside my own home, when I was away from Peter's observant look did a thought cross my brain: _What if Peter Parker and Spider-Man are the same person?_

However, as soon as it came, I squashed it.

There was no way that Peter could be Spider-Man, right?

Right?

But I couldn't help but feel a lingering, suspicious feeling about him, the feeling and thought consuming my mind so much that I hardly noticed when my spider sense went off and just headed up to my room and placed my earphones in, losing myself in the music, and the memories of today making a smile come on my face and a warm, happy feeling buzz inside me as I drifted off to Dreamland.

 **And so, the sparks fly, and the chemistry builds!**

 **I know a large portion of it was Peter's P.O.V, but I wanted to include Silkie in this chapter as little as possible since it doesn't focus mostly on her and the curse. And what do you guys think of Zoe? Do you like her? I hope you do, because she's going to be in this story from now on, save for a few chapters starring only Silkie and Peter, either together or by themselves. And, it looks like Silkie may be developing a little crush on Peter...**

 **Anyway, I don't own The Amazing Spider-Man movies, they belong to Sony Pictures and Marvel, with the characters in the movies belonging to Marvel Comics.**

 **Enjoy the next chapter!**

 **GhostWriterGirl out!**


	9. Chapter 8

**Chapter 9**

Chapter 8

In a prison, far away from New York City, an inmate by the name of Dr. Curt Connors, or as his villainous alter ego was known, the Lizard, was receiving an unexpected visit from two people he didn't expect to be seeing while he was in prison, or ever in his life again.

"Mr. Connors, you've got visitors," his security guard told him.

Dr. Connors looked up, frowning.

"I didn't know ab-"

"Curt, it's me."

Connors' head whipped up at hearing the familiar voice.

"Otto?" he whispered, stunned.

Dr. Octavius looked at his friend, a mixture of emotions on his face.

"Yes, Curt, it's me… and someone else who wanted to see you."

The door slid open and two people entered.

One was Otto, who was close to the bed, and one was a woman who lounged close by the door. Her brown hair was in a messy bun, and her sharp, chocolate brown eyes stared at Dr. Connors coldly.

"Any news?" Connors inquired.

Otto looked at the floor before saying, "The police are going to release you on parole soon."

Before Dr. Connors could say anything, the woman asked sharply, "Otto, can you leave us, please?"

Dr. Octavius nodded and got up, leaving, but not before he shot his friend a brief look: _Good luck_.

Then he was out of the cell, leaving Connors with the woman.

When the door closed, the woman looked at Connors, and said icily, "It's been a long time, Curt."

Connors looked at the woman pleadingly. "Justine, please-"

"What were you thinking?" the woman, Justine, cut in coolly, arms folded. "Why did you did it, why risk everything? Why risk _her_? Why?"

Connors looked down before answering, his voice hardly a whisper, "If I didn't do it, many innocent people at the Veterans Administration would have died, or worse."

Before Justine could respond, a guard came and said, "Miss Marlow, it's time to leave the prisoner."

"Thank you," Justine thanked, turning on her heel and leaving, but before she can leave, Connors sprang up and frantically asked, "How is she? Is… is she well?"

Justine paused thinking, before bitterly telling him, "She's doing fine."

"Does… does she know about me?" he whispered.

"She doesn't," Justine coldly replied, "and she never will."

With those words, she left the cell, slamming the door shut on her way.

Connors slumped in his cell, before Otto came to the window looking through into the cell and said encouragingly, "You'll be a free man soon, Curt. Just stick it out for a few more days."

With those words, Dr. Octavius turned to leave, but before he could, Connors asked, "Does Peter know?"

"Know what?"

"Know the truth about his father. About Richard."

Otto took some time considering this before finally saying, "I don't know," closing the door behind him.

Connors fell back onto his bed, feeling immensely worried, ever since that visit from that guy in the shadows.

As the door to the main hallway closed, you could just see yellow, reptilian eyes… where Connors' normally blue eyes had been.

 **Cliffhanger!**

 **I know, I'm evil, I'm evil, don't kill me for it!**

 **Looks like Connors isn't as cured as he thought...**

 **Anyway, no, i don't own The Amazing Spider-Man, that belongs to Marvel. I only Silkie, Aaron, Zoe and all my other OCs. Oh, and before I forget, can anyone guess who this Justine woman that visited Dr. Curt Connors is? If not, you'll have to wait and find out…**

 **Enjoy the next chapter when it comes!**

 **Please read and review!**

 **GhostWriterGirl out!**


	10. Chapter 9

**Chapter 10**

Chapter 9

Amid the early-morning traffic and noise of a typical morning in New York, the sound of web-shooters going off as new web-lines came out of them was among them as Peter swung across the city.

It had been a hectic night last night; first, he had to stop a mugger, then his spider-sense had gone off, warning him of the mugger's trigger-happy friends _right behind him_. He had dealt with them and webbed them up for the police, with the person the mugger had been, well, mugging having run away the first chance they got. Peter had left then, and had been about to go back home when he heard the blaring alarms of a jewellery store being robbed, and had to turn back and stop the robbers. Not to mention, the rouge armed car that he had to chase down for _three straight hours_ until he managed to stop it and its occupants(thankfully, it wasn't an OsCorp truck containing plutonium; only a normal armoured truck containing nothing but several bars of gold). With no alarms going off, and his spider-sense not blaring anymore, Peter decided that maybe, _maybe_ the crime had stopped for the night. So he web-swung back home and managed to get a couple of hours of sleep.

And then his alarm clock blared, signalling that it was time for him to start his morning patrol(even though Peter knew that the police could handle some of the smaller crime, and that his spider-sense would alert him to any danger, he still went on these patrols just in case someone needed his help).

But, aside from a couple purse snatchers, crime had been relatively tame this morning, and there had been no random attacks from that Hex and her pet giant spider, so Peter was relieved by that.

And there had also been no sightings of a white-suited, female figure web-swinging through the city either, a person who Peter was now conflicted about whether she's a hero or not.

But since crime was relatively low this morning, Peter was now web-swinging back home, hoping to get back there before Aunt May would come to wake him up and find out he was gone.

As he web-swung home, Peter's thoughts strayed to a certain prickly, raven-haired woman that he was lucky to call his friend, and the day that they spent out together. A warm feeling spread in his chest as he remembered that, and a smile formed underneath Peter's mask as he reminisced Silkie's murderous glare as he took a selfie with her while she was still having her third ice cream, and a bit of it was on her nose, which made her look cute; her face when she cooed at the lion cubs when they went to that exhibit in the Central Park Zoo; how the sunlight glinted off her ebony hair; and those beautiful blue eyes, containing those tiniest flecks of hazel and grey, depthless blue eyes that Peter could get lost in...

Suddenly, Peter's spider-sense blared, snapping him out of his thoughts as he hurriedly managed to turn from the building he had just been about to crash into, narrowly avoiding it.

Crisis averted, Peter let out a sigh of relief, before refocusing back on his task of returning back home, returning back to being deep in thought-with his thoughts returning back to Silkie.

Why had his thoughts of her cause him to miss seeing the building until his spider-sense informed him that he was just seconds away from crashing into it? She was just a friend. Sure, they had gotten pretty close, but they _had_ met only earlier this week. They were still getting to know each other, though Peter wasn't eager to tell Silkie he was Spider-Man yet.

And yet... why was he starting to feel the same way towards Silkie as he did towards Gwen?

Sure, it _had_ been six months. It would probably be acceptable if Peter had started showing interest in dating other girls. But, he felt like he wasn't ready yet. Gwen's death was still vivid in his memory, even after six months, especially coupled with the fact that he had broken his promise to her father to keep her safe. It was a sort of grief that couldn't, _wouldn't_ , fade away anytime soon.

So why was Silkie making him feel the exact same way he felt about Gwen?

Deciding that answering that would only make his already-confused brain _more_ confused, Peter decide to think about something else-like his theory about Silkie being Ghost Spider.

 _It makes sense. Ghost Spider showed up around the same time that Silkie and her family moved to New York. Silkie deleted all of her photos of Ghost Spider on her camera after printing them out, and was hesitant to show me them at first. And she_ always _wears long-sleeved shirts and jeans, no matter the weather, not to mention she doesn't show the insides of the wrists almost every time she's in public. But, if she is, then-_

Once again, Peter was pulled out of his thoughts by his spider-sense going off... only except _this_ time, Peter couldn't help avoiding colliding into the person his spider-sense tried to warn him _not_ to collide into.

"OOF!" came the matching exclamations of pain as Peter and the mystery person collided into the other. The force of the collision, unfortunately, meant that the web-line Peter was swinging from broke, and he didn't have enough time to fire another one. So that left him and the mystery person to free fall for a bit, until they crashed into the hard, gravelly, _welcome_ rooftop of a building that had been _just there underneath them._

Groaning, Peter sat up, wincing from both the collision and the hard meeting between his body and the roof. Though, thanks to his faster-than-average healing factor, the throbbing pain he was feeling would probably fade away by early afternoon.

As soon as he sat up and checked that no major bones were broken or his skull hadn't been cracked open, Peter decided to check on the person he had collided with and sent tumbling down on the roof with him. But that person, apparently, had also recovered.

Groggily, the mystery person sat up and groaned, "What hit me?" as they held a hand to their head.

Peter froze.

That voice... he recognised that voice.

And as the person sat up, he began to recognise the silvery white spandex suit with the red web pattern on it, the silver spider emblem on the chest and the red one on the back, and the wide, white eyeholes lined in red as the person also recognised him.

That person scrambled up, shifting their stance into a defensive one, but still tense enough to show they would fight him as well as web-swing away.

Because, this person was...

" _Ghost Spider_."

* * *

Okay, _maybe_ not the best idea to immediately stand up and get into a defensive stance while your left side is sending reminders to your brain of how _excruciatingly painful_ its meeting was with both the unexpected collision into the red-and-blue clad web-swinging hero _and_ the meeting with the roof.

But considering the _last_ time me and Spidey had met had been when I had a mini-breakdown after he had persistently tried to get me to answer questions about why I didn't help him with the hostage situation, especially when I helped him fight Hex back at the college, I wasn't taking any chances. I didn't know if he searched up my aunt's superhero alter-ego like I said to him to show _why_ I couldn't get involved in cases where innocent people were around, making me at risk of enacting the curse, and his mask wasn't helping matters.

Still, my mind was in the flight-or-fight setting, adrenaline starting to pound through my system, my limbs instinctively locking together into a defensive stance despite the pain my left side was making me go through, while also being prepared to web-swing away, just in case things turned ugly between me and the other spider-themed hero here.

I just hoped things wouldn't get ugly.

As I went into a sort-of staring contest with Spider-Man, despite the fact that our masks cover our eyes, all I could think past the pain, the adrenaline, the need to choose either fight or flight was that: _How did web-swinging through the city while searching for Hex and my cursed aunt land me here?_

Oh yeah! I know! I ignored my spider-sense when it was blaring at me like a smoke alarm to _freaking turn when I had the chance_!

I think my spider-sense is laughing at me right now for my stupidity.

But it doesn't matter now.

Right now, I have to pick fight or flight.

I don't want to fight Spider-Man, in case I antagonised him further and permanently ruin any chances of us possibly becoming allies, despite my unwillingness to help stop crime when civilians are nearby, as I have a feeling he could probably help me take down Hex for good and free my aunt.

But... I also don't want to retreat. Despite my faults, my flaws, I am no coward. The last time me and Spider-Man met, and I had fled, it could have looked cowardly. But it wasn't. I was leaving before I could do something that I would probably regret forever. I don't need me fleeing _this_ confrontation to make him permanently think that I am a coward.

And anyway, no matter if I'm Silkie Arach, or Ghost Spider, I am not a coward. I am _never_ a coward. And I'm _not_ going to start now.

Silkie Tabitha Arach doesn't run. And neither does Ghost Spider. She stays, and she fights, even if it means losing any hope of having a fellow ally in the fight against the psychopathic, so-called "Sorceress of Darkness and Death" and freeing my aunt from both the curse and the aforementioned psycho witch.

There is no choice now.

I choose fight... and I stay.

 _I am no coward. I_ do not _run from a confrontation._

My stance automatically shifts, turning from defensive into a slightly more offensive stance. Spider-Man, seeing the subtle shift, also braced himself for an attack from me, though he seemed reluctant? A spark of hope lit up in my chest. _Maybe he doesn't want to fight me?_

But I squash it. This isn't the time for doubts and second-guesses and hopes. This is the time where you have to be on guard, be alert, before you get hurt…

Or worse.

As I ready myself for the coming fight between me and the hero in front of me, despite the aching pain from my left side and the rational part of me yelling at me to _not_ fight, all I can think is this:

 _May the best spider win._

 **No, Silkie! What are you doing!? Listen to the rational part of yourself! LISTEN!**

 ***bangs head on desk* Why do I make such stubborn, headstrong characters who are worried about being perceived as cowards, even though the ones who might think they're cowards could be helpful allies? Oh, I know why... IT'S BECAUSE I WANT TO MAKE MY OCS MORE LIKE HUMAN BEINGS!**

 **Umm... so... yeah.**

 **Well, I hope that you liked this chapter! I'm sorry if some parts were cringy, or if I made Peter OOC or Silkie a Mary Sue. I am completely sorry for that.**

 **Anyway, it seems like Peter suspects Silkie may be Ghost Spider! And that he might start to have some feelings for her. But does Silkie feel the same? You'll have to see...**

 **Also, Spider-Man Vs. Ghost Spider! What will happen? Will they fight, or will they not? And if they do, who'll win? You'll have to wait until the next chapter for that...**

 **And no, I don't own The Amazing Spider-Man. It all belongs to Sony and Marvel comics. All I own is the story and my own characters.**

 **Please read and review!**

 **GhostWriterGirl out!**


	11. Chapter 10

**Chapter 11**

Chapter 10

As soon as Peter noticed Ghost Spider shifting her stance to prepare for an attack, he changed his own to brace himself for an attack from her. Which, when Peter played back their last two encounters, was completely unexpected. Sure, he _did_ unintentionally pushed her during their last encounter, but not to the point where she was preparing herself for her to fight, or be attacked by, him. What had changed?

Peter was still thinking about what could have happened, that if it hadn't been for his spider-sense, he would _not_ have seen that punch coming.

Instinct taking over, Peter hurriedly leapt into the air, avoiding the punch, and somersaulted back onto the rooftop. Bits of gravel clung to his suit, but Peter barely paid any attention to it as he shot a web line at Ghost Spider, but she dodged out of the way. She then shot a web line at him, but Peter avoided it. He then ran at Ghost Spider, who seemed too surprised to dart out of the way. However, just as Peter shot a web line at Ghost Spider, she shot her own at him. The web lines met each other halfway, sticking together at the ends. The joined line went slack, but it then grew taunt as the force from the web lines having been fired and then joined resonated, sending the two spider-heroes crashing into each other and onto the ground, the web line tangled around them.

Peter, after getting over the surprise and shock, noticed that he was on top of the spider-themed heroine. Behind the mask, Peter felt his cheeks heating up as he hurriedly apologised, "I'm sorry, I-"

But he had just gotten those words out when Ghost Spider kneed him in the gut. Hard.

Stunned at the sudden attack, Peter was still comprehending it when his spider-sense blared and he had to dodge to avoid the right hook Ghost Spider had tried to land on him. Peter hurriedly got off of Ghost Spider, causing her to leap up to her feet. Even though she was masked, Peter could tell she was getting irritated with Peter not wanting to hit her.

"Come on, Spidey! Is that the best you have?" Ghost Spider taunted, crouching down and going for a sweep kick, but Peter lunged away, which just made Ghost Spider more irritated. "If this is about me being a girl and you don't want to hit me, forget that! I can handle a few punches!"

She shot a web line at him, but Peter caught the webbing strand and used it to swing himself to where Ghost Spider was standing. The eyeholes of her mask widened in shock and she lowered herself to the ground, avoiding being kicked in the stomach by Peter's feet, but then she stood back up and did a roundhouse kick, only to be blocked by Peter, who punched her in the stomach. She spluttered, but recovered and fired a webbing strand straight at Peter's chest. It hit, and Ghost Spider pulled Peter to her, but Peter was prepared. As soon as Ghost Spider had finished him pulling to her, she aimed to punch him again, but Peter grabbed the web strand and pulled with all of his strength. The result was Ghost Spider yelping in pain and surprise as the web line snapped from the strength of Peter pulling the strand of webbing and the white-and-silver clad female hero stumbled forward, clutching her right wrist, and Peter fired a web line at her left leg, before he pulled the line to him, causing Ghost Spider's left leg to be pulled out from her and have her fall to the ground, groaning in pain as she landed on her back.

Peter let go of the web line and fired more at Ghost Spider's wrists, ankles and torso, immobilising her and making her unable to use her web shooters. Still, she struggled, not wanting to give up without a fight, bucking wildly against the webbing that pinned her down, fury at being beaten and a stubborn desire to get free radiating off of her. However, after a minute she realised she wasn't getting free anytime soon and gave up, finally admitting defeat.

"Well played, Smart Guy," Ghost Spider said, going slack against her restraints. "Well played."

Lifting her head up as much as she could, Ghost Spider asked him, "Now, am I getting out of these restraints, or am I supposed to be in this oh-so-comfortable position for the rest of the day?"

Ignoring the sarcasm thick in the spider-themed heroine's last sentence, Peter walked up to her, kneeled down and used his superhuman strength to rip the web-restraints off of her wrists, ankles and torso.

Now free, Ghost Spider sat up, rubbing her gloved wrists while getting to her feet, shooting Peter the dirtiest look she could through her mask.

"Webbing me to the rooftop was uncalled for, Smart Guy," Ghost Spider grumbled.

"Considering that we were fighting a few minutes ago, I'd say it was absolutely called for," Peter countered, crossing his arms.

"Touché."

Ghost Spider crossed her own arms and looked at him, Peter looking right back. The masked, previously fighting heroes were in a stare-off, silence building between them, until Peter broke it by asking, "What the hell was _that_ about, Ghost Spider? I thought we were allies."

Ghost Spider preoccupied herself with brushing gravel off of her suit, before she answered, "And we are. I just needed to let out some steam."

Peter raised an eyebrow underneath his mask, not believing her. "And fighting me was the way to do it?"

"It's better than punching something repeatedly," Ghost Spider retorted.

"True."

Silence hung in the air again, until Ghost Spider decided to be the one to break it by saying, "You know, for a guy who's been doing this whole superhero thing for three years, you're a pretty good fighter. I mean, you _did_ kick my ass back there."

"To be honest, you kicked mine as well. I actually thought you were going to win," Peter admitted.

Ghost Spider laughed. "Well it's good to see I'm not as rusty as I previously believed."

Peter chuckled, and the way the lenses on Ghost Spider's mask lifted told Peter she was smiling.

He then thought over their fight, how Ghost Spider seemed to know what she was doing, as if she had formal training...

Looking back at the heroine, Peter asked, "Do you train?"

Ghost Spider looked at him, the lenses of her mask narrowing. "If you mean I train with my powers, then yes. I do train."

"No, no, I meant combat training," Peter elaborated, feeling awkward.

Ghost Spider, now understanding what Peter meant, said, "Well, yes. I had some formal hand-to-hand combat training, thanks to my mentor. Why? Do you want me to train you?"

Ghost Spider's eyes widened and she looked away as she mumbled, "But you don't have to say yes. But I could teach you. It would take some time, but I still remember the basics, and... and now I'm rambling, aren't I?"

Peter grinned. "What happened to the cocky superhero who almost defeated me earlier?"

"Even cocky superheroes can ramble, Smart Guy," Ghost Spider fired back. "And for the record, if you hadn't webbed me up, I could have beaten you."

Peter arched a brow underneath his mask. "Could have?"

Ghost Spider titled her head, lenses lifting up as if telling him she was smiling. "Look who's being cocky now."

Peter scoffed in disbelief and Ghost Spider giggled. A comfortable silence weighed in the air afterwards until Ghost Spider said, "I better get going. Got lots of things to do, places to be."

She turned and was about to web-swing away before she turned back, and added, "See you around, Smart Guy. Maybe we could spar like this again sometime."

"Sparring?" Peter echoed, eyebrow arched underneath his mask.

"Look, I know me attacking you out of nowhere was... strange, and I have to admit that some of my own insecurities played a part in it. But, it was kinda cool fighting against someone who has nearly the same powers and fighting experience as me. So we could, maybe, spar again. Together," Ghost Spider confessed. "But, I do understand if you don't want to do that. Like I said, I attacked you without any reason except for that I was trying to let off some steam, and even _that_ sounds pathetic to me. I just thought... y'know."

Ghost Spider fired a web-line and was about to swing away when Peter asked her suddenly, "You were trained by your mentor, weren't you?"

Ghost Spider froze.

Peter knew that he was probably an idiot for asking what could have been obvious and a jerk for bringing up her deceased mentor, but Ghost Spider just said one word, her tone neutral and frigid.

"Yes."

And even though he may be pushing too far, that he should have stopped with that, Peter just questioned, "And you sparred with her, didn't you? She had the same powers as you do, right?"

"Why are you asking me this?" Ghost Spider asked back, words sharp and biting. She wasn't facing him, but Peter could see that her clenched fists were shaking.

"Maybe because I want to get to know you better," he said softly. "And I'm sorry, if my questions are hurting you."

The spider-heroine didn't say anything.

"Ghost—" Peter started, but she interrupted sharply, "You are right, Smart Guy. I... I sparred with my mentor, and she had spider-powers as well. She was... she was Arachna Woman."

She turned around and glared at him, the lenses of her mask narrowed.

"But you already knew that, didn't you?"

Peter opened his mouth, intending to apologise, but Ghost Spider cut in bitterly, "See you around, Spider-Man."

And then she was web-swinging away, until she was a white blur amongst the cityscape.

Peter sighed and muttered, "You really blew it, Parker."

And Peter was web-swinging away too, heading back home and wondering how he could patch things up between him and Ghost Spider when they met next.

...

 _Meanwhile_

I sat on the roof of my house, still wearing my suit but with my mask off as I tried to plough through the chaotic, tumbling feelings of grief, sadness and regret that had surfaced as I remembered Aunt Janet, how she taught me everything I knew, and about the superhero business.

All of that, brought up by Spider-Man's questions.

I knew that he didn't mean any harm, that he was just curious. But that still didn't stop the tidal wave of memories come crashing down over me, didn't stop me remembering all the times I trained with her, how she taught me to control my powers and use them for good, how to fight with them and to always protect others in a way that wouldn't enact the curse, and to sometimes leave the crime-fighting to the police.

I remembered my aunt, and how much I missed her.

Blinking back tears, I looked at my mask, as I let a memory of one of our training sessions wash over me, let myself remember it...

...

 _ **Flashback-Fourteen years ago**_

" _OOF!"_

 _Ten-year-old Silkie Arach laid on the blue mat, panting heavily, after being knocked down there by her aunt, whom she glared at._

" _No fair! I could have beaten you this time!" she complained, still shooting glares at the dark-haired woman standing above her._

 _Aunt Janet half-smiled and said, "If you hadn't left your right side unguarded, then maybe the results of our match would have been different."_

 _Silkie groaned and muttered, "That's what you always say."_

" _And you have yet heeded my advice," Aunt Janet quipped, holding a hand out to her niece for her to take._

 _Silkie took it and Janet helped pull her up, the young girl frustrated that she couldn't get it right._

" _I don't get it. I've been trying to defend both of my sides, but I always leave one undefended!" Silkie exclaimed in frustration. "What will it take to finally get it right?!"_

 _In her frustrated anger, Silkie punched the mat as hard as she could, pummelling it until she stopped seeing red. When she did, Silkie stopped punching the mat, and stared up at her aunt, who had placed a hand on her shoulder._

" _Silkie, I understand that you're frustrated; I too had difficulty keeping both my right and left guarded," Aunt Janet admitted._

" _R-really?" Silkie asked, blue eyes wide._

 _Her aunt nodded. "Really. But Silkie, understand that anger and frustration aren't the way to go, and they won't help you when you're actually fighting criminals."_

" _Then... then how do I become as good as you are?" Silkie asked._

 _Her aunt stood up and walked over to stand in front of her, before kneeling down. Looking at her niece straight in the eye, Janet placed her hands on Silkie's thin shoulders, her lips a firm line and her eyes solemn._

" _With time and practice, Silk. You have to try over and over again. Practice, until you know that you have gotten it right. And when you have the basic moves down, you have to trust in your spider-sense to help you, to save you from any danger," Aunt Janet advised._

 _Silkie, who now understood what her aunt meant, said, "I... I think I get it now."_

 _She smiled at her aunt and hugged her. "Thanks, Auntie."_

 _Her aunt smiled too and hugged her back. "It's quite alright, Silkie."_

 _Aunt and niece stayed in their hug a little while longer, before pulling apart and standing up. Silkie, now knowing what to do, said confidently to her aunt, "I would like to spar with you again, Auntie Janet. I think... I think I can do it now."_

 _Her aunt smiled at her and just got into a fighting position. "Then let's spar."_

 _Silkie too got into a fighting position, a confident smirk on her face._

 _She_ could _beat her aunt now; her aunt's advice had finally made something click in her brain. Silkie could spar with Aunt Janet, and she would win. She was positive of that._

 _Then the two of them charged at each other._

 _Aunt Janet made to punch Silkie, but the young girl ducked out of the way and stuck a leg out to trip her aunt. The older woman, however, recovered quickly and proceeded to unleash an onslaught of punches and kicks on her protege. But Silkie was quick to block them, dodging and intercepting and throwing her own punches when she could. Her spider-sense blared away, and Silkie used it to advantage. However, her spider-sense couldn't help her avoid all of them, and her aunt managed to land a few hits on her. But Silkie got in a few hits on her mentor as well, who seemed to be_ smiling _as they sparred._

 _Aunt and niece sparred for what seemed to be hours, until Silkie's spider-sense rang louder than usual, and her aunt made to land a winning blow on Silkie's unguarded left side._

 _Remembering her aunt's advice about trusting in her spider-sense, Silkie spun out of the way, dropped to the floor and did a sweep kick to her aunt's legs, sweeping them out from under her and causing the older woman to fall down and hit the mat with a muffled thump._

 _Standing up, Silkie barely managed to contain her joy at_ finally _beating her aunt in one of their sparring matches. But that joy soon turned to worry when she remembered that her aunt wasn't as young as Silkie was, and that the mat had taken a beating when Silkie had ruthlessly punched it earlier._

" _Auntie Janet, are you okay?" Silkie asked worriedly as she ran up to her and kneeled beside her, only to be stunned when she that her aunt was..._ smiling _?_

" _Auntie?" Silkie questioned in puzzlement as her aunt smiled broader._

" _I am so_ proud _of you, Silkie. You took my advice to heart and defeated me. Well done, my darling," Aunt Janet congratulated._

 _A smile returned to Silkie's lips and she said shyly, "Thanks, Auntie."_

 _Her aunt got up and winced a bit, and Silkie's earlier worry returned._

" _Are you okay, Auntie Janet? I-I didn't hurt you... did I?" Silkie asked worriedly._

 _Her aunt waved her off as she smiled at her. "I'm fine, Silkie. I've had worse."_

 _Silkie bit her lip, still worried, but she decided to not say anything else, knowing that what her aunt said was true._

 _Janet looked to the clock on the wall and said, "It's getting late. I'll drive you home, Silkie."_

" _Can't we spar some more?" Silkie questioned, not wanting to leave just yet._

" _Silkie," Aunt Janet said, a warning tone to her voice, but Silkie wasn't going to concede just yet._

"Please _, Auntie? Just one more round?" Silkie pleaded, giving her aunt the puppy-dog eyes._

 _Janet wasn't convinced._

" _We're going home, Scarlet. Now," Aunt Janet stated and walked away to get changed out of her training clothes._

 _Silkie pouted and muttered, "Okay."_

 _Her aunt looked back and added, "But Silkie, when we get home, I've got a surprise for you?"_

 _Silkie perked up. "A surprise? What is it?"_

 _Her aunt smiled. "If I told you, it wouldn't be a surprise, would it?"_

 _Silkie frowned, wanting to know what the surprise was, but decided to wait until she got home._

 _Heading to where the changing rooms were, Silkie changed out of her training clothes—a loose grey shirt and black shorts—and into a blue and white short-sleeved shirt and pale pink shorts and white sneakers. The ten-year-old leaned against the wall as she waited for her aunt, who soon came out only seconds later._

 _Janet was now wearing a black shirt, dark blue denim jeans, ankle-length grey boots and a white jacket, her bobbed hair brushed and swept behind her ears._

 _Her aunt smiled at her and said, "Let's go home, Silk."_

 _Silkie nodded and held her aunt's hand as they walked out of the abandoned warehouse and to the car parked out front, where a surprise for Silkie from her aunt was waiting in her room..._

 _..._

 _ **End flashback**_

I looked at my mask, stared into the white lenses surrounded by that red trimming, the fine red lines on the white spandex mimicking a web. This mask had protected my identity for so long, that it had saved my life as much as my spider-sense, my training or any of my other powers had.

The mask... the mask had been the surprise from my aunt.

" _I thought it was time you had your own mask, Silk. Take good care of it, and don't let anyone outside our family and those who know see it."_

I held the mask close to my chest as tears pricked my eyes and made their escape down my face, softly dripping down on my legs.

I missed my aunt. I wanted... I wanted to save her, to break the curse on her.

But I didn't know. I didn't know, _and it was tearing me up inside._

I wanted to save Aunt Janet. But I didn't have the first clue on how to.

I didn't know how long I sat on the roof, silently crying at how much I missed my aunt, how I couldn't save her even though I desperately had too, how I didn't know how to help her, that mask pressed tightly to my chest, but hours must have passed, as it was where Aaron found me later.

Pushing open the skylight to my attic bedroom, Aaron walked across the rooftiles and sat beside me, saying nothing as he tried to give some comfort for me. And though it was uncommon of him, I took it gratefully. Looking again at my mask, I whispered, "I was thinking of Aunt Janet."

Understanding and shared grief shone in his eyes, Aaron knowing how much Aunt Janet had meant to me. Wrapping an arm around my shoulders, he asked me, "Will you be okay to go to college?"

Despite that it had been seven years since my aunt's "death" and I had mostly gotten over it, the body-shattering, mind-numbing grief would strike me every now and then. Sometimes, it was okay, and I could push it down and get through the day and do what I had to do, both as Silkie Arach and as Ghost Spider, even though I wanted to curl up into a ball and scream and cry at the unfairness or the world of taking away the kind, gentle, fierce, _good_ person Aunt Janet had been.

But sometimes... sometimes the grief would become too much. It would press painfully on my chest, crushing me and leeching me of happiness, of joy, of hope. It would bleed into my dreams and I would sometimes wake up screaming from nightmares of seeing my aunt killed over and over in her fight with that villain, of being helpless to stop it. On those days, I couldn't even leave my bed, much less go to school, or to college. And on those days, either Mom or myself would call sick and I stayed at home to get over this, to know that it was going to be okay even when my brain was telling me it wasn't, that it wasn't going to be okay. Not when Aunt Janet was gone.

I had gone to a counsellor, once, to help me with this grief that seemed it would never go away. It had gotten worse, instead of better, as the years went by, and me being Ghost Spider didn't help, in the eyes of my concerned parents. So I went, and the grief _did_ ease to something tolerable, until I could barely feel it. I still mourned for my aunt's seemingly death, for the woman that had been almost like a second mother to me. And when I felt that I wasn't going to wake up screaming in the middle of the night, that I wasn't going to lock up and freeze in school or web-swinging or with my friends and cry and scream as something or someone triggered a memory of Aunt Janet looking after me when my parents were out, teaching me to use my powers, how to be a superhero like her, how to be _better_ than her, I stopped seeing my counsellor, but I promised my parents that if this depression-like grief reared its head again, if I felt _anything_ like I felt before I saw that counsellor, I would see her again.

That had been three years ago.

Over those three years, I managed my grief if I had any flare-ups or something triggered those memories. I learned how to not let it control me when I was at school, or fighting crime as Ghost Spider, or during the first few, stressful days of college. That grief was still there, but it was... better. Still tough and I still hadn't let it go, but it was better.

 _I_ was better.

It had been such a dark time in my life, and I was still trying to live with it, with that grief that always hung around, waiting to pounce and drag me back down. That had been helped, with knowing my aunt was still alive, but a different kind of grief lurked in my heart, knowing that I couldn't help break the curse on her.

But I was okay. I really was.

I looked at Aaron and half-smiled at me. "I'm okay, Aaron. I can handle college. It's not... it's not that bad."

Aaron gave me a look of skepticism and brotherly concern, and I gave him a stubborn look to show him I was indeed okay.

That seemed to convince him.

"Okay. If you say you're fine, then you're fine," Aaron said, before fixing me with a glare. "But, if you're not okay, or if it gets too much, I'll take you home, Scarlet."

I glared at him, but a smile softened it. "Thanks, Aaron. Even though you're an insufferable dweeb, I'm... I'm glad that you care about me."

"Scarlet, you're my sister. I always care about you and worry about you, even when I know you're perfectly capable of protecting yourself," Aaron told me.

His words touched me, but I mock-frowned and stared into his face as I punched him in the chest. Hard.

"OW! What was _that_ for, Scarlet?!" Aaron asked, rubbing his chest.

"Just checking to see if you're actually my brother and not some double of him, because _no_ way can the real Aaron be so caring," I informed him, but there was light teasing in my voice.

"How can you say that? I'm plenty caring," Aaron said and smirked at me. I rolled my eyes.

"You're insufferable!"

"And yet you still love me and see me as your hero."

I scoffed and playfully punched him in the arm. "My hero, huh? That'll be the day."

"Oh, Scarlet, I was your hero when we were kids," Aaron informed me, still smirking.

I punched him in the arm again and smirked at him. "And like I said before, that'll be the day."

"Lie to yourself all you want, Scarlet; you know that I, as your big brother, will always be your hero," Aaron told me, still smirking.

"No, you're not, Aaron. And stop calling me Scarlet, dweeb!" I retorted, folding my arms.

He held up his hands in a placating gesture, yet he still smirked at me. "No promises."

I glared at him. "Ass."

Aaron placed a hand on his chest as he said dramatically, "You wound me, sis. You wound me deeply."

I snorted, "Not too deeply, I hope. I wouldn't want to be held responsible for wounding that ego of yours."

"I love ya too, sis," Aaron said and hugged me.

I smiled and hugged him too. "Love ya too, dweeb."

Aaron pulled out of it a couple seconds later and offered, "Now, would you like your dweeb of a brother to drive you to college?"

I shook my head. "No. Thanks for the offer, though, but I think I'll take the scenic route."

He shrugged. "Suit yourself."

Aaron stood up and headed back to the still-open skylight. He was about to enter through it when he stopped and turned back, brotherly concern in his eyes.

"If it's too much, or you need to talk to somebody, or need a shoulder to cry on... I'll always be there for you as your brother," he reminded me.

I smiled softly. "Thanks for caring about me, Aaron."

He smiled back. "Then it means I'm doing my job as big brother well."

He then left.

Sighing, I stood up and smiled. I was grateful that my brother was there for me. Despite our bickering and his obnoxious self, we loved each other and cared for each other. He had supported me through that difficult time as our parents did. We were close, even though we didn't show it when we bickered and argued.

 _If it hadn't been for my brother, for my parents, for my best friend... I would still be in that dark place._

I looked at the New York skyline as I put my mask back on. The mask that had been a gift from Aunt Janet, the mask that had been one more step in me becoming Ghost Spider.

 _I'm going to save you, Aunt Janet. I'll break the curse on you, and I'll free you from Hex's clutches. I promise._

 _But I'm going to need help._

I shot a web-line at a light pole and started web-swinging to Columbia University, knowing that I was going to need help breaking Aunt Janet's curse.

If I saw him again, I was going...

I was going to ask Spider-Man for help.

 **I know, I know, this chapter was extremely late. But between real life, writing stories on Wattpad and general procrastination and writer's block, I had trouble writing this.**

 _ **But**_ **, here it is, and I hope you all like it!**

 **So yes, Peter and Silkie fought and Peter won. Though, if the fight had gone on longer, Silkie would have won, as she has roughly around five years of training thanks to her aunt, and roughly seven years of combat experience. That, and she's more in tune with her powers. Peter, if we're going by the** _ **Amazing Spider-Man**_ **timeline, has roughly had his powers for three years. Same with combat experience. Maybe in a much more fairer fight, Silkie would've won?*shrugs***

 **And yes, Peter and Silkie are on friendly terms again and allies once more!**

 **But maybe not for long, considering how Peter's questions affected Silkie, even though he didn't mean to hurt her.**

 **And we have an insight in how Silkie and Janet's mentor-protege relationship was like courtesy of that flashback! Before Silkie unlocked her powers, they were close, and after she unlocked her powers and asked Janet to train her and teach her on how to become a superhero and to control her power, they became closer still, with Janet giving Silkie the very mask that she still wears eight years later.**

 **So, when her aunt disappeared, it shattered Silkie, both emotionally and mentally. She went into a depression-like state thanks to her grief, where she would enter moments lost in her memories of her aunt and then crying her heart out thanks to a word or person triggering it, waking up screaming from a nightmare about her aunt dying over and over and being helpless to stop it and going into bouts where she was so numb to the world, that she didn't want to get out of bed. But thanks to the support of her parents, brother and best friend and due to meeting with an counsellor, that depression-like grief got tolerable and Silkie got better, until she felt that she didn't need to see that counsellor anymore, but promised her parents if anything like what she felt happened again, she would go see her again. That had been three years ago, and Silkie is still okay.**

 **Now, I've never had depression, or had someone that close to me die and grieve for them that long, but if any of you readers out there** _ **are**_ **having depression, or have lost someone very close to you, know that you have people who love you and worry about you, and if you want or need help, then** _ **let them help you**_ **. You're not alone. You're** _ **never**_ **alone.**

 **Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! And no, I don't own the Amazing Spider-Man; all characters belong to Sony and Marvel comics, with Spidey himself belonging to Stan Lee.**

 **Please read and review!**

 **GhostWriterGirl out!**

 **(RIP Stan Lee. We'll forever miss you. Excelsior! ;-;)**


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